TiO₂-Coated MoO₃ Nanorods for Lithium/Sodium-Ion Storage

Molybdenum trioxide (MoO₃) shows promise as an anode material for Li/Na-ion batteries due to its low cost and high capacity. However, it suffers from poor cycling stability and volume expansion during charging and discharging, which affects its performance. To overcome these issues, researchers have developed a unique hybrid composite by coating MoO₃ nanorods with TiO₂, creating MoO₃@TiO₂ core-shell nanorods. The TiO₂ coating significantly improves the composite’s cycling stability, rate capability, and overall electrochemical performance in Li/Na-ion batteries. The optimized electrode (MoO₃@TiO₂-2) achieves an impressive capacity of 1259.4 mA h g^-1 after 500 cycles at 200 mA g^-1 and a discharge capacity of 693.3 mA h g^-1 after 1000 cycles at 2000 mA g^-1 in lithium-ion batteries. In sodium-ion batteries, they show high reversible discharge capacities of 499.1 and 389.3 mA h g^-1 after 500 cycles at 100 and 200 mA g^-1, respectively. Moreover, even after 1200 cycles at 2 A g^-1, the electrode retains a capacity of 300.2 mA h g^-1. When combined with an NMC₈₁₁ cathode in a full-cell Li-ion battery, the composite exhibits excellent cycling performance, lasting over 150 cycles with a capacity of 200 mA h g^-1. This research has significant implications for the development of high-performance rechargeable batteries for various electrochemical energy applications.