Carbon-coated Li4Ti5O12 nanoflakes for ultra-fast charging of lithium-ion batteries

Improving the high-rate performance of lithium-ion batteries is one of the pressing needs of the current electronic device and electric vehicle markets. In this work, a carbon-coated nanosheet-structure lithium titanate (CC-LTO) was synthesized by a relatively simple solvothermal reaction and calcination process, which can achieve ultrafast charging and discharging performance and ultralong cycle stability in lithium-ion battery systems. Ultrathin nanosheet structure greatly shortens the diffusion distance of lithium ions, while the uniform carbon cladding improves the material's electrical conductivity, so the CC-LTO exhibits excellent rate performance. The CC-LTO has a high specific capacity of 153.9 mAh g−1 and 137.9 mAh g−1 at high rate of 80C and 160C, respectively. Meanwhile, CC-LTO also has very high cycling stability, with a capacity retention rate of 77.2% after 10,000 cycles at 10C. Therefore, CC-LTO has a very broad application prospect in the field of lithium-ion battery and commercialization market.