The electrochemical performance of lotus-root shaped meso-/macroporous TiO2 anode for lithium-ion battery

As an alternative to the graphite-based anode in lithium-ion battery (LIBs), the TiO2-based anode has continuously drawn attention due to its high stability and long operating life, especially in the field of electric vehicles (EVs). Although a spinel structure lithium titanate (LTO, Li4Ti5O12) anode is commercially available, there has been a constant need to improve the anode capacity with TiO2-based materials because they have much higher theoretical capacity compared to LTO. In this regard, nanostructured TiO2-based materials with high surface area are thought to be ideal for LIB anode application. In this study, a lotus-root shaped meso-/macroporous TiO2 (LR-700) material was prepared and employed as an anode material for LIB with expectancy to have large channels for easy Li+ insertion and thus show better electrical property. Coin cell tests were carried out with the anodes prepared from LR-700, LTO, and nano-sized TiO2 powder (known as P25) for comparison by charging and discharging at 0.5 C. Despite the presence of large macroporous channels and mesopores in the walls for LR-700, the capacity of 158 mAh/g for LR-700 anode was found to be slightly lower than the LTO's theoretical discharge capacity of 175mAh/g. We envision that less thicker walls would enhance the performance through effective ion diffusion and electronic conduction.