Scalable Synthesis of Si/C Microspheres with 3D Conducting Nanosized Porous Channels as High-Performance Anodes in LIBs

To relieve the volume expansion of silicon during the lithium insertion/desertion process, we designed fluffy rice carbon/nano-Si@C (FRC/NP-Si@C) composites with a stable structure via spray drying, a large-scale produced low-cost approach. Nanosilicon particles are fixed in robust microspheres assembled from FRC and pitch carbon while forming three-dimensional (3D) conducting nanosized porous channels. FRC/NP-Si@C composites, as anodes for lithium-ion batteries, display outstanding cycling and rate performances at room temperature owing to their special structure. They exhibit a reversible capacity of 600 mAh g–1 at 0.1 A g–1 after 200 cycles as well as stable capacities of 1688.2 and 579.8 mAh g–1 at current densities of 0.1 and 1.6 A g–1, respectively, indicating their use as alternative anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs).