Magnetic field assisted high capacity durable Li-ion battery using magnetic α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles decorated expired drug derived N-doped carbon anode
Dipsikha Ganguly, Ajay Piriya Vijaya Kumar Saroja, Anamika Ghosh, Sundara Ramaprabhu
Abstract
Abstract We have synthesized a novel ferromagnetic material by coating α-Fe 2 O 3 nanoparticles with N-doped carbon matrix using a simple combustion method. Expired paracetamol drugs are used as nitrogen and carbon source. This α-Fe 2 O 3 /NC shows ferromagnetic property due to the incorporation of oxygen defects. When used as the Li-ion battery anode, α-Fe 2 O 3 /NC shows higher capacity compared to commercial α-Fe 2 O 3 due to the occurrence of both intercalation and conversion reaction. Further, application of magnetic field at the anode of the freshly assembled cell at the first charge-discharge cycle, results in ~two-fold enhancement in specific capacity. For the cycled cell also, increase in the capacity from 80 mAh. g −1 to 150 mAh. g −1 at 5 A. g −1 is observed during the application of magnetic field at the 501 st charging cycle. This improved performance is attributed to the field-dependent enhancement of diffusion and convection due to the magnetohydrodynamic effect. Further, application of the magnetic field at 1001 st , 1501 st and 1751 st charging cycles shows improved LIB performance. We can show that not only the magnetic field, magnetic properties of the anode α-Fe 2 O 3 /NC also play a crucial role in influencing the battery performance. Moreover, utilization of expired drug helps in dramatically reducing pollution caused by its disposal.