Electrospinning Synthesis of Porous NiCoO₂ Nanofibers as High-Performance Anode for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Nanostructured ternary/mixed transition metal oxides have attracted considerable attentions because of their high-capacity and high-rate capability in the electrochemical energy storage applications, but facile large-scale fabrication with desired nanostructures still remains a great challenge. To overcome this, a facile synthesis of porous NiCoO₂ nanofibers composed of interconnected nanoparticles via an electrospinning–annealing strategy is reported herein. When examined as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, the as-prepared porous NiCoO₂ nanofibers demonstrate superior lithium storage properties, delivering a high discharge capacity of 945 mA h g⁻¹ after 140 cycles at 100 mA g⁻¹ and a high rate capacity of 523 mA h g⁻¹ at 2000 mA g⁻¹. This excellent electrochemical performance could be ascribed to the novel hierarchical nanoparticle-nanofiber assembly structure, which can not only buffer the volumetric changes upon lithiation/delithiation processes but also provide enlarged surface sites for lithium storage and facilitate the charge/electrolyte diffusion. Notably, a facile synthetic strategy for fabrication of ternary/mixed metal oxides with 1D nanostructures, which is promising for energy-related applications, is provided.