Fabrication of TiO2@C/N composite nanofibers and application as stable lithium-ion battery anode

Abstract In this work, a flexible film composed of TiO2 nanoparticles embedded in N-doped carbon nanofibers (TiO2@C/N) was synthesized and used as free-standing electrode material for Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) without conductive additives, current collectors and binders. The TiO2@C/N electrode presented high initial discharge capacity of 1054.7 mAh g-1 and superior cycle stability, which was due to the large number of highly exposed TiO2 nanocrystal enriching the charge transfer channels, and the carbon nanofiber skeleton with high structural integrity and mechanical flexibility. The result indicated that the TiO2@C/N composite nanofibers were good anode candidate for LIBs.