Fluorine-free Ti3C2Tx as anode materials for Li-ion batteries

Two-dimensional material Ti 3 C 2 T x (T = OH, O, F) attracts great attention due to its excellent performance in energy storage. The functional groups on the surface have tremendous influence on its electrochemical performance. Herein, Ti 3 C 2 T x powders with different surface chemistry were obtained via the etching with sodium hydroxide and hydrofluoric acid and used as anode materials for Li-ion batteries. Alkali etched Ti 3 C 2 T x (mass loading: 1.24 mg cm −2 ) possesses a larger c -lattice parameter and functional groups without fluorine terminated, showing nearly twice capacities higher than that of Ti 3 C 2 T x etched by hydrofluoric acid (mass loading: 1.06 mg cm −2 ) at current density of 0.5 A g −1 . It is suggested that fluorine-free Ti 3 C 2 T x etched via alkali is more promising for lithium-ion batteries than its fluorine-containing counterpart.