Anodic Performance of Mesoporous TiO2-C Composites with Cu Nanopaticles Embedded for Lithium Ion Battery

Ordered mesoporous TiO2-C composites with Cu nanoparticles embedded (TiO2-C-Cu) have been prepared via an evaporation induced of self-assembly (EISA). Through controlling the hydrolysis of Ti species by the acid-base pair of TiCl4 and Ti(OBu)4 precursors, the ordered mesoporous structure with a large surface area of 161.9 m2 g-1 are obtained. The structure-directing of polymer Pluronic P123 are convert into a sturdy carbon and metallic Cu nanoparticles are highly dispersed in the mesoporous TiO2-C composites after the calcinations in a N2 flow. When the composites are used as the anode material for lithium ion batteries, the lithium storage performance are effectively improved by “Cu-embedded” nanoparticles at low current density. The reversible capacity of TiO2-C-Cu could be stable at 150.0 mAh g-1 when the current density is 33.4 mA g-1. Moreover, the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and cycle voltammogram (CV) analysis further reveal that the electrochemical performance of TiO2-C-Cu composite is significantly improved by “Cu-embedded”, as well as by the ordered mesoporous channels. Accordingly, metal-embedded in mesoporous TiO2-C composites would be a promising way to improve the electrochemical performance of TiO2 as the anode material in lithium ion battery.