Tin-Coated Viral Nanoforests as Sodium-Ion Battery Anodes

• Published in: ACS nano Vol. 7; no. 4; pp. 3627 - 3634
• Main Authors: Liu, Yihang, Xu, Yunhua, Zhu, Yujie, Culver, James N, Lundgren, Cynthia A, Xu, Kang, Wang, Chunsheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 23.04.2013
• Subjects: Adsorption; Anodes; Battery; Capsid Proteins - chemistry; Cycles; Electric Power Supplies; Electrodes; Equipment Design; Equipment Failure Analysis; Genetic Engineering - methods; Ions; Nanorods; Nanostructure; Nanostructures - chemistry; Nanostructures - ultrastructure; Particle Size; Protein Binding; Self assembly; Sodium - chemistry; Surface Properties; Three dimensional; Tin; Tin - chemistry; Tobacco Mosaic Virus - chemistry; Tobacco Mosaic Virus - genetics; magnetron sputtering; nanohierarchy; tobacco mosaic virus; Sn nanoforest anodes; physical vapor deposition; Na-ion batteries
• ISSN: 1936-0851; 1936-086X
• DOI: 10.1021/nn400601y

Designed as a high-capacity alloy host for Na-ion chemistry, a forest of Sn nanorods with a unique core–shell structure was synthesized on viral scaffolds, which were genetically engineered to ensure a nearly vertical alignment upon self-assembly onto a metal substrate. The interdigital spaces thus formed between individual rods effectively accommodated the volume expansion and contraction of the alloy upon sodiation/desodiation, while additional carbon-coating engineered over these nanorods further suppressed Sn aggregation during extended electrochemical cycling. Due to the unique nanohierarchy of multiple functional layers, the resultant 3D nanoforest of C/Sn/Ni/TMV1cys, binder-free composite electrode already and evenly assembled on a stainless steel current collector, exhibited supreme capacity utilization and cycling stability toward Na-ion storage and release. An initial capacity of 722 mA·h (g Sn)−1 along with 405 mA·h (g Sn)−1 retained after 150 deep cycles demonstrates the longest-cycling nano-Sn anode material for Na-ion batteries reported in the literature to date and marks a significant performance improvement for neat Sn material as alloy host for Na-ion chemistry.