Enhanced electrochemical performances of CuCrO₂-CNTs nanocomposites anodes by in-situ hydrothermal synthesis for lithium ion batteries

The CuCrO₂-carbon nanotubes (CNTs) nanocomposites synthesized by the in-situ hydrothermal method exhibit excellent specific capacity retention and cyclic performances. Due to the poor conductivity and large volume variation of CuCrO₂, its discharge capacity only remains 304 mAh g ^-1 (0.2C) after 140 cycles. However, the electrochemical performances of CuCrO₂ anodes are improved remarkably by adding 5-20 wt% CNTs. The CuCrO₂-CNTs composite anodes maintain a specific capacity of 742 mAh g^-1 after 60 cycles (0.2C) when the CNTs proportion is over 10 wt%. Even at 1C charge/discharge rates, they still exhibit high capacity retention of 530 mAh g^-1 after 40 cycles. The SEM micrographs show that CNTs are dispersed well within the CuCrO₂ matrix to form a 3D network. Such a network structure provides good electrical conductivity and restrains the volume variations during the cycling processes, which collaboratively improve the discharge specific capacity and cycling performance.