Controllable synthesis of 3D porous SnO2/carbon towards enhanced lithium-ion batteries

In this report, the watermelon-like SnO2 nanoparticles embedded in the three-dimensional (3D) porous carbon matrix are successfully fabricated through a simple one-pot strategy. In this nano-architecture, the carbon with sufficient void space is uniformly mixed with the SnO2, while the adjacent SnO2 particles are separated by carbon. The special 3D architecture can not only protect the SnO2 particles from agglomeration but also improve the conductivity when compared with independent SnO2. Moreover, the carbon matrix with numerous void space can efficiently buffer the volume change and separate SnO2 nanoparticles, leading to excellent cyclic stability. When applied in lithium-ion battery (LIBs), the produced 3D porous SnO2/C composite exhibited a high specific capacity of ~ 513 mAh/g with outstanding cyclic stability of 92.5% capacity retention after 250 cycles at the current density of 250 mA/g.