Facile hydrothermal synthesis and enhanced electrochemical properties of a layered NiSiO/RGO nanocomposite with an interesting dandelion-like structure.

Materials with unique structures can exhibit different properties and are widely studied in the preparation of new materials. Herein we reported a hydrothermal method to fabricate a layered nickel silicate/reduced graphene oxide (NiSiO/RGO) nanocomposite with an interesting dandelion-like structure. The morphology, composition, and electrochemical performance of RGO, NiSiO, and NiSiO/RGO were comparatively investigated in the current work. The results showed that the NiSiO/RGO nanocomposite has a dandelion-like hollow core-shell structure and shows good electrochemical performance. Compared with NiSiO, the original discharge capacity of NiSiO/RGO increased from 1291.6 mA h g to 1653.9 mA h g; meanwhile, the reversible specific capacity of NiSiO/RGO increased from 649.6 mA h g to 691.4 mA h g after testing at a current density of 100 mA g for 100 cycles. Moreover, the prepared NiSiO/RGO maintained a coulombic efficiency of about 97% after the initial charging and discharging cycle. This unique hollow dandelion-like structure enhanced the electrical conductivity and further resulted in lower diffusion resistance and higher reversible capacity. This work demonstrated that the layered NiSiO/RGO with an interesting dandelion-like structure can act as an alternative anode material for lithium-ion batteries.