Solvent Engineered Synthesis of Layered SnO Nanoparticles for High-Performance Anodes

TL;DR

This study introduces a solvent-based synthesis of layered SnO nanoparticles with tunable size and shape, combining wet chemistry and electronic structure calculations to optimize their use as high-performance lithium-ion battery anodes.

Contribution

It presents a novel, controllable synthesis method for SnO nanoparticles and integrates computational insights to understand and predict their electrochemical performance.

Findings

Nanoparticle morphology can be tailored by solvent choice.

Synthesized SnO nanoparticles show improved battery performance.

Electronic structure calculations elucidate surface and shape properties.

Abstract

Batteries are the most abundant form of electrochemical energy storage. Lithium and sodium ion batteries account for a significant portion of the battery market, but high-performance electrochemically active materials still need to be discovered and optimized for these technologies. Recently, tin(II) oxide (SnO) has emerged as a highly-promising battery electrode. In this work, we present a facile synthesis method to produce SnO nanoparticles whose size and shape can be tailored by changing the solvent nature. We study the complex relationship between wet chemistry synthesis conditions and resulting layered nanoparticle morphology. Furthermore, high-level electronic structure theory, including dispersion corrections to account for van der Waals forces, are employed to enhance our understanding of the underlying chemical mechanisms. The electronic vacuum alignment and surface energies are determined, allowing the prediction of the thermodynamically-favoured crystal shape (Wulff construction) and surface-weighted work function. Finally, the synthesized nanomaterials were tested as Li-ion battery anodes, demonstrating significantly enhanced electrochemical performance for morphologies obtained from specific synthesis conditions.