Hierarchically Well-Developed Porous Graphene Nanofibers Comprising N-Doped Graphitic C-Coated Cobalt Oxide Hollow Nanospheres As Anodes for High-Rate Li-Ion Batteries

Hierarchically well-developed porous graphene nanofibers comprising N-doped graphitic C (NGC)-coated cobalt oxide hollow nanospheres are introduced as anodes for high-rate Li-ion batteries. For this, three strategies, comprising the Kirkendall effect, metal–organic frameworks, and compositing with highly conductive C, are applied to the 1D architecture. In particular, NGC layers are coated on cobalt oxide hollow nanospheres as a primary transport path of electrons followed by graphene-nanonetwork-constituting nanofibers as a continuous and secondary electron transport path. Superior cycling performance is achieved, as the unique nanostructure delivers a discharge capacity of 823 mAh g⁻¹ after 500 cycles at 3.0 A g⁻¹ with a low decay rate of 0.092% per cycle. The rate capability is also noteworthy as the structure exhibits high discharge capacities of 1035, 929, 847, 787, 747, 703, 672, 650, 625, 610, 570, 537, 475, 422, 294, and 222 mAh g⁻¹ at current densities of 0.5, 1.5, 3, 5, 7, 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 80, and 100 A g⁻¹, respectively. In view of the highly efficient Li⁺ ion/electron diffusion and high structural stability, the present nanostructuring strategy has a huge potential in opening new frontiers for high-rate and long-lived stable energy storage systems.