Carbon spheres infused with iron oxide or rust could boost lithium-ion battery energy storage and sustainability, according to a study.
Researchers at Germany’s Saarland University and Austria’s University of Salzburg have collaborated to create a lithium-ion battery electrode that offers a more environmentally friendly alternative to nickel and cobalt.
Their study looks at replacing those materials with iron oxide, the main component of rust, which is cheap, abundant and widely available.
The Salzburg team created tiny, highly porous, hollow carbon spheres. Known as carbon spherogels, these novel materials – around 250 nanometres in diameter – offer a large surface area that supports high electrochemical capacity.
The Saarland team then introduced finely dispersed iron oxide into these spheres to improve battery performance. Using a scalable synthesis methodology based on iron lactate, they were able to integrate different quantities of iron into the carbon framework of the hollow spheres...