Improvement of the cycle life of composite xerogel V<inf>2</inf>O<inf>5</inf>/C in aqueous LiNO<inf>3</inf> solution by addition of vinylene carbonate

Abstract

The xerogel V2O5/C composite was synthesized by a sol–gel method, using the suspension of carbon black in the solution of crystalline V2O5 in hydrogen peroxide as the precursor solution. The Li+ interca-lation/deintercalation reactions of the xerogel V2O5/C composite, used as an anode material of a two-elec-trode cell with an aqueous LiNO3 solution as the electrolyte, was studied before and after the addition of vinylene carbonate (VC). Upon addition of vinylene carbonate in an amount of only l wt %, the coulombic capacity during galvanostatic cycling, instead of commonly observed permanent fade, displayed an initial increase and then a stable plateau.