A nanostructured Ni/T-Nb_(2)O_(5)@carbon nanofibers as a long-life anode material for lithium-ion batteries

In this work,nickel/T-Nb_(2)O_(5)nanoparticles encapsulated in mesoporous carbon nanofibers(denoted as Ni/T-Nb_(2)O_(5)@CNFs)are successfully prepared through a simple electrospinning route and succedent heating treatment.The presence of Ni in carbon nanofibers is beneficial for enhancing the electronic conductivity and the initial Coulombic efficiency.Ni/T-Nb_(2)O_(5)nanoparticles are homogeneously incorporated in carbon nanofibers to form a nanocomposite system,which provides effective buffering during the lithiation/delithiation process for cycling stability.The Ni/TNb_(2)O_(5)@CNFs show high surface area(26.321 m^(2)·g^(-1))and mesoporous microstructure,resulting in higher capacity and excellent rate performance.The Ni/T-Nb_(2)O_(5)@CNFs exhibit a remarkable capacity of 437 mAh·g^(-1)at a current density of0.5 A·g^(-1)after 230 cycles and a capacity of 173 mAh·g^(-1)at a current density up to 10.0 A·g^(-1)after 1400 cycles.This work indicates that nickel/T-Nb_(2)O_(5)nanoparticles encapsulated in carbon nanofibers can be a promising candidate for anode material in high-power LIBs.