Electrochemical performances of nano-Co3O4 with different morphologies as anode materials for Li-ion batteries

Three kinds of Co3O4 nanomaterials with different morphologies were synthesized controllably by a post-anneal-assisted hydrothermal method in this study. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy indicated that all three kinds of samples were pure cubic phase of Co3O4 with morphologies of nanorods, nanoclusters, and nanoplates. Moreover, the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution TEM showed that the Co3O4 nanorods were bamboo-like and highly crystalline structures. When these materials were applied to the lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) as anode materials, the Co3O4 of nanorods demonstrated the best performance. It has a stable reversible capacity of 954 mAh g−1 as the anode of a LIB, much higher than the other two kinds of Co3O4 of rod-like nanoclusters and nanoplates, even after 35 cycles. All results showed that the morphology and microstructure take very important roles in the performance of Co3O4 as the anode materials in LIBs.