Synthesis of nanobelt-tangled spheroids of copper (II) oxide at room temperature and their application for lithium-ion batteries

Fluffy nanobelt-tangled spheroids of copper oxide were synthesized by a simple zinc-involved sacrificial-template-assisted wet-chemical method at room temperature. Their structures were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The possible growth mechanism of the spheroids is discussed in this paper. For potential application in lithium-ion batteries, an electrode made of the copper oxide spheroids shows excellent electrochemical cycling performance and high rate capability.