Simple and Green Method for Fabricating V2O5·nH2O Nanosheets for Lithium Battery Application

During the last few years, the synthesis of inorganic two dimensional (2D) materials tremendously increased, due to their promising surface area1,2. However, the synthesis of these 2D materials can significantly influence our environment, by the use of harmful chemicals and severe reaction conditions3,4. Herein, we report on a simple and green strategy for fabricating hydrated vanadium pentoxide (V2O5.nH2O) nanosheets from commercially available vanadium oxides precursors via water based exfoliation technique. Operando and ex situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies were conducted to track the structural changes during the exfoliation process. The vanadium oxidation states and the water content of the material were determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), respectively. Electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM) showed that the V2O5.nH2O is composed of a few nanometer thick nanosheets. A composite material of the V2O5∙nH2O nanosheets and multi-walled carbon nanotube (MW-CNT) were fabricated and then tested as a free standing electrodes (FSE) and conventionally casted electrodes (CCE) for lithium battery. Both electrodes showed promising capacities and rate capabilities for lithium-ion intercalation