Enhancing Ultrafast Lithium Ion Storage of Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ by Tailored TiC/C Core/Shell Skeleton Plus Nitrogen Doping

Abstract

Abstract It is of great importance to reinforce electronic and ionic conductivity of Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 electrodes to achieve fast reaction kinetics and good high‐power capability. Herein, for the first time, a dual strategy of combing N‐doped Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 (N‐LTO) with highly conductive TiC/C skeleton to realize enhanced ultrafast Li ion storage is reported. Interlinked hydrothermal‐synthesized N‐LTO nanosheets are homogeneously decorated on the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) derived TiC/C nanowires forming binder‐free N‐LTO@TiC/C core–branch arrays. Positive advantages including large surface area, strong mechanical stability, and enhanced electronic/ionic conductivity are obtained in the designed integrated arrays and rooted upon synergistic TiC/C matrix and N doping. The above appealing features can effectively boost kinetic properties throughout the N‐LTO@TiC/C electrodes to realize outstanding high‐rate capability at different working temperatures (143 mAh g −1 /10 C at 25 °C and 122 mAh g −1 /50 C at 50 °C) and notable cycling stability with a capacity retention of 99.3% after 10 000 cycles at 10 C. Moreover, superior high‐rate cycling life is also demonstrated for the full cells with N‐LTO@TiC/C anode and LiFePO 4 cathode. The dual strategy may provoke wide interests in fast energy storage areas and motivate the further performance improvement of power‐type lithium ion batteries (LIBs).