Nitrogen-Doped Titanium Niobium Oxides Coated with N/S-Codoped Carbon as an Integrated Electrode for Lithium-Ion Batteries

TiNb₂O₇ (TNO) shows high stability and safety, positioning it as a promising candidate for the development of anodes in lithium-ion batteries. Nevertheless, its large-scale application is limited by the sluggish ion and electron transport kinetics within the bulk material. To address this issue, a powerful integrated electrode design is employed to grow TNO nanoparticles on carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays to form NS-C/N-TNO/CNTs. Moreover, biphasic doping including N doping in TNO and N/S codoping in carbon coating on the surface of TNO can be simultaneously achieved via the thermal decomposition of thiourea. Benefiting from the CNT arrays and biphasic doping, the composite possesses enhanced electrical conductivity both outside and inside TNO. Under the influence of the comprehensive advantages mentioned above, the NS-C/N-TNO/CNT composite demonstrates exceptional high-rate performance (352 mA h g⁻¹ at 1 C and 142 mA h g⁻¹ at 30 C).