@article{32,
  author = {Umer Farooq and Farheem Ahmed and Syed Pervez and Sarish Rehman and Michael Pope and Maximilian Fichtner and Edward Roberts},
  title = {A stable TiO2-graphene nanocomposite anode with high rate capability for lithium-ion batteries},
  abstract = {<p>A rapid microwave hydrothermal process is adopted for the synthesis of titanium dioxide and reduced graphene oxide nanocomposites as high-performance anode materials for Li-ion batteries. With the assistance of hydrazine hydrate as a reducing agent, graphene oxide was reduced while TiO<sub>2</sub>&nbsp;nanoparticles were grown&nbsp;<em>in situ</em>&nbsp;on the nanosheets to obtain the nanocomposite material. The morphology of the nanocomposite obtained consisted of TiO<sub>2</sub>&nbsp;particles with a size of ∼100 nm, uniformly distributed on the reduced graphene oxide nanosheets. The as-prepared TiO<sub>2</sub>–graphene nanocomposite was able to deliver a capacity of 250 mA h g<sup>−1</sup>&nbsp;± 5% at 0.2C for more than 200 cycles with remarkably stable cycle life during the Li<sup>+</sup>&nbsp;insertion/extraction process. In terms of high rate capability performance, the nanocomposite delivered discharge capacity of&nbsp;<em>ca.</em>&nbsp;100 mA h g<sup>−1</sup>&nbsp;with &gt;99% coulombic efficiency at C-rates of up to 20C. The enhanced electrochemical performance of the material in terms of high rate capability and cycling stability indicates that the as-developed TiO<sub>2</sub>–rGO nanocomposites are promising electrode materials for future Li-ion batteries.</p>
},
  year = {2020},
  journal = {RSC Advances},
  volume = {10},
  pages = {29975-29982},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1039/D0RA05300G},
}