Electrochemical Characterization of Anodic Tin Oxides with Nano-Porous Structure

A nano-porous structure of tin oxide was prepared using an anodic oxidation process and the sample's electrochemical properties were evaluated for application as an anode in a rechargeable lithium battery. Microscopic images of the as-anodized sample indicated that it has a nano-porous structure with an average pore size of several tens of nanometers and a pore wall size of about 10 nanometers; the structural/compositional analyses proved that it is amorphous stannous oxide (SnO). The powder form of the as-anodized specimen was satisfactorily lithiated and delithiated as the anode in a lithium battery. Furthermore, it showed high initial reversible capacity and superior rate performance when compared to previous fabrication attempts. Its excellent electrode performance is probably due to the effective alleviation of strain arising from a cycling-induced large volume change and the short diffusion length of lithium through the nano-structured sample. To further enhance the rate performance, the attempt was made to create porous tin oxide film on copper substrate by anodizing the electrodeposited tin. Nevertheless, the full anodization of tin film on a copper substrate led to the mechanical disintegration of the anodic tin oxide, due most likely to the vigorous gas evolution and the surface oxidation of copper substrate. The adhesion of anodic tin oxide to the substrate, together with the initial reversibility and cycling stability, needs to be further improved for its application to high-power electrode materials in lithium batteries.

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