title: Hierarchical Structural Evolution of Zn2GeO4in Binary Solvent and Its Effect on Li-ion Storage Performance.
abstract: Zinc germinate (Zn2GeO4) with a hierarchical structure was successfully synthesized in a binary ethylenediamine/water (En/H2O) solvent system by wet chemistry methods. The morphological evolution process of the Zn2GeO4was investigated in detail by tuning the ratio of En to H2O in different solvent systems, and a series of compounds with awl-shaped, fascicular, and cross-linked hierarchical structures was obtained and employed as anode materials in lithium-ion batteries. The materials with fascicular structure exhibited excellent electrochemical performance, and a specific reversible capacity of 1034 mA h g-1was retained at a current density of 0.5 A g-1after 160 cycles. In addition, the as-prepared nanostructured electrode also delivered impressive rate capability of 315 mA h g-1at the current density of 10 A g-1. The remarkable electrochemical performances could be ascribed to the following aspects. First, each unit in the three-dimensional fascicular structure can effectively buffer the volume expansions during the Li+extraction/insertion process, accommodate the strain induced by the volume variation, and stabilize its whole configuration. Meanwhile, the small fascicular units can enlarge the electrode/electrolyte contact area and form an integrated interlaced conductive network which provides continuous electron/ion pathways.
authors.affiliation: Hubei Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials, Ministry-of-Education Key Laboratory for Synthesis and Applications of Organic Functional Molecules, Hubei University , Wuhan 430062, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, School of Mechanical, Materials, and Mechatronics Engineering, University of Wollongong , North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
authors.forename: Tengfei
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7364-0434
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, School of Mechanical, Materials, and Mechatronics Engineering, University of Wollongong , North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: Hubei Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials, Ministry-of-Education Key Laboratory for Synthesis and Applications of Organic Functional Molecules, Hubei University , Wuhan 430062, China.
authors.forename: Jianwen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Hubei Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials, Ministry-of-Education Key Laboratory for Synthesis and Applications of Organic Functional Molecules, Hubei University , Wuhan 430062, China.
authors.forename: Chuanqi
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Material Processing and Die & Mould Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology , Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China.
authors.forename: Yue
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Material Processing and Die & Mould Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology , Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China.
authors.forename: Yunhui
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Hubei Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Organic Chemical Materials, Ministry-of-Education Key Laboratory for Synthesis and Applications of Organic Functional Molecules, Hubei University , Wuhan 430062, China.|Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, School of Mechanical, Materials, and Mechatronics Engineering, University of Wollongong , North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia.
authors.forename: Zaiping
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3464-5301
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Guo
keywords: Zn2GeO4; fascicular; hierarchical; lithium-ion batteries; network