%0 Journal Article
%T Nanoengineering to Achieve High Sodium Storage: A Case Study of Carbon Coated Hierarchical Nanoporous TiO2 Microfibers.
%A Wang N
%A Gao Y
%A Wang YX
%A Liu K
%A Lai W
%A Hu Y
%A Zhao Y
%A Chou SL
%A Jiang L
%J Adv Sci (Weinh)
%V 3
%N 8
%D 08 2016
%M 27818908
%F 17.521
%R 10.1002/advs.201600013
%X Nanoengineering of electrode materials can directly facilitate sodium ion accessibility and transport, thus enhancing electrochemical performance in sodium ion batteries. Here, highly sodium-accessible carbon coated nanoporous TiO2 microfibers have been synthesised via the facile electrospinning technique which can deliver an enhanced capacity of ≈167 mAh g-1 after 450 cycles at current density of 50 mA g-1 and retain a capacity of ≈71 mAh g-1 at the high current rate of 1 A g-1. With the benefits of their porous structure, thin TiO2 inner walls, and the introduction of conductive carbon, the nanoporous TiO2/C microfibers exhibit high ion accessibility, fast Na ion transport, and fast electron transport, thereby leading to the excellent Na-storage properties presented here. Nanostructuring is proven to be a fruitful strategy that can alleviate the reliance on materials' intrinsic nature; and the electrospinning technique is versatile and cost-effective for the fabrication of such an effective nanoporous microfiber structure.