Effect of Germanium Incorporation on the Electrochemical Performance of Electrospun Fe 2 O 3 Nanofibers-Based Anodes in Sodium-Ion Batteries.

Petrovičovà, Beatrix; Ferrara, Chiara; Brugnetti, Gabriele; Ritter, Clemens; Fracchia, Martina; Ghigna, Paolo; Pollastri, Simone; Triolo, Claudia; Spadaro, Lorenzo; Ruffo, Riccardo; Santangelo, Saveria; Pandey, Gaind P.

Featured Application: Authors are encouraged to provide a concise description of the specific application or a potential application of the work. This section is not mandatory. Fe2O3 and Fe2O3:Ge nanofibers (NFs) were prepared via electrospinning and thoroughly characterized via several techniques in order to investigate the effects produced by germanium incorporation in the nanostructure and crystalline phase of the oxide. The results indicate that reference Fe2O3 NFs consist of interconnected hematite grains, whereas in Fe2O3:Ge NFs, constituted by finer and elongated nanostructures developing mainly along their axis, an amorphous component coexists with the dominant α-Fe2O3 and γ-Fe2O3 phases. Ge4 ions, mostly dispersed as dopant impurities, are accommodated in the tetrahedral sites of the maghemite lattice and probably in the defective hematite surface sites. When tested as anode active material for sodium ion batteries, Fe2O3:Ge NFs show good specific capacity (320 mAh g−1 at 50 mA g−1) and excellent rate capability (still delivering 140 mAh g−1 at 2 A g−1). This behavior derives from the synergistic combination of the nanostructured morphology, the electronic transport properties of the complex material, and the pseudo-capacitive nature of the charge storage mechanism.

SODIUM ions; GERMANIUM; ANODES; MAGHEMITE; ANODES testing; CARBON nanofibers

Applied Sciences (2076-3417), 2021, Vol 11, Issue 4, p1483

2076-3417

Academic Journal

10.3390/app11041483