Metal-Organic Frameworks-Derived Mesoporous Si/SiO @NC Nanospheres as a Long-Lifespan Anode Material for Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Silicon (Si)-based anode materials with suitable engineered nanostructures generally have improved lithium storage capabilities, which provide great promise for the electrochemical performance in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Herein, a metal-organic framework (MOF)-derived unique core-shell Si/SiO @NC structure has been synthesized by a facile magnesio-thermic reduction, in which the Si and SiO matrix were encapsulated by nitrogen (N)-doped carbon. Importantly, the well-designed nanostructure has enough space to accommodate the volume change during the lithiation/delithiation process. The conductive porous N-doped carbon was optimized through direct carbonization and reduction of SiO into Si/SiO simultaneously. Benefiting from the core-shell structure, the synthesized product exhibited enhanced electrochemical performance as an anode material in LIBs. Particularly, the Si/SiO @NC-650 anode showed the best reversible capacities up to 724 and 702 mAh g even after 100 cycles. The excellent cycling stability of Si/SiO @NC-650 may be attributed to the core-shell structure as well as the synergistic effect between the Si/SiO and MOF-derived N-doped carbon.