Rice University lab combines graphene nanoribbons with tin
oxide for improved anodes
Researchers at Rice University have come up with a new way
to boost the efficiency of the ubiquitous lithium ion (LI) battery by employing
ribbons of graphene that start as carbon nanotubes.
Proof-of-concept anodes — the part of the battery that
stores lithium ions — built with graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) and tin oxide
showed an initial capacity better than the theoretical capacity of tin oxide alone,
according to Rice chemist James Tour. After 50 charge-discharge cycles, the
test units retained a capacity that was still more than double that of the
graphite currently used for LI battery anodes.
The research appeared this week in the American Chemical
Society journal ACS Nano.