Polydopamine-Assisted Bi-Functional Modification of NiO Anode for Enhanced Lithium-Ion Storage Performance

The blooming requirement of high-performance energy storage systems has aroused the thirst for advanced energy storage materials. As a high capacity anode, however, the application of NiO nanoparticles (NiO NPs) is hindered by intractable issues of dramatic volume change, intrinsic low electronic conductivity, and severe aggregation tendency during lithiation/delithiation. Herein, a polydopamine (PDA) assisted bi-functionalization strategy for fabricating of PDA@NiO-CNT composites for fast and durable lithium storage is reported. In this composite, CNTs intertwine to form a network to ensure sufficient electrolyte infiltration and act as a highly conductive system to motivate fast charge transmission. The strong binding affinity of PDA facilitates bonding between NiO NPs and CNTs, which not only forms uniform and flexible PDA coating but also ensures homogeneous distribution of NiO NPs on CNTs network. Therefore, the bi-functional modified PDA@NiO-CNT electrode possesses high conductivity, alleviates volume change and aggregation of NiO NPs during cycling, achieves a reversible capacity of 1326 mAh g(-1) at 100 mA g(-1), a rate capability of 215 mAh g(-1) at 2000 mA g(-1) and a cycling stability with 78% capacity retention after 250 cycles. This bi-functional modification approach manifests its prospective potential for architecting other electrode materials toward high-performance electrochemical devices.