Bimetallic Antimony-Vanadium Oxide Nanoparticles Embedded in Graphene for Stable Lithium and Sodium Storage

Bimetallic oxides have received considerable attention as anodes for lithium/sodium-ion batteries (LIBs/SIBs) due to their high electrochemical activity and theoretical specific capacity. However, their cycling performance is limited by large volume variation, severe aggregation, and pulverization of bimetallic oxide nanoparticles during repeated metal ion insertion/extraction processes. Herein, bimetallic antimony-vanadium oxide nanoparticles embedded in graphene (SbVO4/G) composites are prepared by a one-step hydrothermal method. Bimetallic SbVO4 with abundant redox reaction sites can provide high specific capacity by a multi-electron reaction. A robust graphene substrate can not only alleviate volume expansion but also prevent aggregation and collapse of highly active bimetallic SbVO4. Due to the excellent synergy between the two building components, SbVO4/G hybrids exhibit excellent electrochemical activity, structural stability, and electrochemical performance. When employed as anodes for LIBs and SIBs, SbVO4/G composites display excellent cycling performance (1079.5 mAh g-1 at 0.1 A g-1 after 150 cycles for LIBs and 401.6 mAh g-1 at 0.1 A g-1 after 450 cycles for SIBs) and impressive rate capability. This work demonstrates that SbVO4/G composites are promising anodes for both LIBs and SIBs.