Co3O4/SnO2 Hybrid Nanorods as High-Capacity Anodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries

With the surging demand for high-performance energy storage devices, enhancing the energy density and charge-discharge efficiency of lithium-ion batteries has become an urgent need. Co3O4, with a high theoretical specific capacity of 890 mAh g−1, is regarded as a promising anode candidate. In this work, rod-like hybrid Co3O4/SnO2 composites were successfully prepared via the pyrolysis of cobalt-tin ethylene glycolate precursor. Notably, when the Co/Sn molar ratio is tuned to 3.8:1, the product evolves into nanorods. Lithium-ion batteries using Co3.8Sn1 as the anode deliver an initial specific capacity of 1588.9 mAh g−1, and retain a reversible capacity of 427.9 mAh g−1 after 500 cycles at 2 A g−1, demonstrating that Sn-doping-induced optimization of morphology and conductivity effectively enhances electrochemical performance.