PEG-Assisted synthesis of manganese oxide nanorods and their application as electrode material for lithium-ion batteries

Abstract

In this work, we report on large-scale synthesis of α-MnO2 nanorods by the polyol route based on a simple redox reaction using an organic reducing agents potassium permanganate (KMnO4) and polyethylene glycol (PEG). The as-synthesized amorphous MnO2 is converted into crystalline form on annealing at temperature of 600 °C. The formation of MnO2 nanorod-like morphology is confirmed with scanning electron microscopy complemented with high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The nanorods measure about 50 - 200 nm in length and 50 nm in diameter. The electrochemical lithium intercalation and de-intercalation of nanorods are performed by means of galvanostatic charge-discharge cycling. The initial discharge capacity of nanorod α-MnO2 is found to be about 214 mAh/g-1 with reasonably good rate capability. © 2013 Göller Verlag.