Progress of nanostructured metal oxides derived from metal–organic frameworks as anode materials for lithium–ion batteries

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are the newly crystalline porous materials with outstanding structural, compositional, and morphological features, which have garnered much attention in all dimensions of major scientific and engineering fields, including energy storage and conversion. Various pristine MOFs and their derivatives have been developed and used as anode materials in lithium–ion batteries (LIBs). In this review, we specifically focused on MOFs–derived nanostructured metal oxides with diverse structural and compositional features that exhibit exceptional lithium storage capacity. These intriguing nanostructures inherit the multidimensional structure of MOF and the advantage of even distribution of metallic species after thermal decomposition, which facilitates fast reaction kinetics of lithium transportation and ultimately improves the battery performance. Herein, we review and categorise the synthetic strategies to achieve various transitional metal oxide nanostructures/composites obtained from BDC/BTC–based MOFs (H2BDC = 1,4–benzenedicarboxylic acid, H3BTC = 1,3,5–benzenetricarboxylic acid), zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs), Prussian blue and Prussian blue analogues (PB and PBAs), and other unusual porous crystalline MOF materials. In addition, we will also compare the electrochemical performances of various metal oxides (MOs) nanostructures obtained via heteroatom doping in the pristine MOF precursor or by tuning their structure. Finally, our discussion will focus on the advantages and future developments in design and fabrication of new MOF–derived metal oxide electrode materials with high energy efficiencies in relation with the next generation rechargeable battery applications.