Graphene/Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Hybrids: One-Step Catalytic Growth and Applications for High-Rate Li–S Batteries
Open Access
- 21 November 2012
- journal article
- Published by American Chemical Society (ACS) in ACS Nano
- Vol. 6 (12), 10759-10769
- https://doi.org/10.1021/nn304037d
Abstract
The theoretically proposed graphene/single-walled carbon nanotube (G/SWCNT) hybrids by placing SWCNTs among graphene planes through covalent C-C bonding are expected to have extraordinary physical properties and promising engineering applications. However, the G/CNT hybrids that have been fabricated differ greatly from the proposed G/SWCNT hybrids because either the covalent C-C bonding is not well constructed or only multiwalled CNTs/carbon nanofibers rather than SWCNTs are available in the hybrids. Herein, a novel G/SWCNT hybrid was successfully fabricated by a facile catalytic growth on layered double hydroxide (LDH) at a high temperature over 950 °C. The thermally stable Fe nanoparticles and the uniform structure of the calcined LDH flakes are essential for the simultaneously catalytic deposition of SWCNTs and graphene. The SWCNTs and the CVD-grown graphene, as well as the robust connection between the SWCNTs and graphene, facilitated the construction of a high electrical conductive pathway. The internal spaces between the two stacked graphene layers and among SWCNTs offer room for sulfur storage. Therefore, the as obtained G/SWCNT-S cathode exhibited excellent performance in Li-S batteries with a capacity as high as 650 mAh g(-1) after 100 cycles even at a high current rate of 5 C. Such a novel G/SWCNT hybrid can serve not only as a prototype to shed light on the chemical principle of G/CNT synthesis but also as a platform for their further applications in the area of nanocomposites, heterogeneous catalysis, drug delivery, electrochemical energy storage, and so on.This publication has 64 references indexed in Scilit:
- Layer-by-layer assembly of chemical reduced graphene and carbon nanotubes for sensitive electrochemical immunoassayBiosensors and Bioelectronics, 2012
- Graphene-nanotube 3D networks: intriguing thermal and mechanical propertiesJournal of Materials Chemistry, 2011
- Thin films of carbon nanotubes and chemically reduced graphenes for electrochemical micro-capacitorsCarbon, 2011
- Transparent, Flexible Conducting Hybrid Multilayer Thin Films of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes with Graphene NanosheetsACS Nano, 2010
- Self-Assembled Graphene/Carbon Nanotube Hybrid Films for SupercapacitorsThe Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters, 2009
- Synthesis, Structure, and Properties of Single‐Walled Carbon NanotubesAdvanced Materials, 2009
- Pillared Graphene: A New 3-D Network Nanostructure for Enhanced Hydrogen StorageNano Letters, 2008
- The rise of grapheneNature Materials, 2007
- Potential Applications of Carbon NanotubesPublished by Springer Science and Business Media LLC ,2007
- Applications of Carbon NanotubesPublished by Springer Science and Business Media LLC ,2001