Fabrication of SiO₂ aerogel supported C/TiO₂ nanocomposite and Li⁺ storage performance

SiO₂ aerogel supported C/TiO₂ (SiO₂@C/TiO₂) nanocomposite was compounded via a simple polymerizing and sintering methods. TiO₂ and carbon sphere are closely interlinked with the SiO₂ aerogel of the network structure to form the SiO₂@C/TiO₂ nanocomposite (400–500 nm in the size), which promotes the conveyance of electrons and ions and improves the structural constancy of the SiO₂@C/TiO₂. When SiO₂@C/TiO₂ is used as a negative electrode material for Lithium ion battery, the first discharge capacity is 451.6 mA h/g at 100 mA/g, the retention capacity is 218.3 mA h/g after 200 cycles and delivering the rate one is 130.2 mA h/g at 1000 mA/g. The reversible capacity and cycle constancy of SiO₂@C/TiO₂ nanocomposite are better than that of TiO₂ and C/TiO₂ because the SiO₂@C/TiO₂ nanocomposite is associated with SiO₂ aerogel with crosslinked network structure and has strong synergistic effect among various components.