Experimental and theoretical investigation of silicon-based carbon composite electrode for high performance Li-ion capacitors

Lithium-ion capacitors (LICs) have garnered significant attention in recent years due to their ability to overcome the shortcomings of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and supercapacitors (SCs). Silicon (Si) stands out as a superior anode material for LICs due to its compelling attributes, including a high theoretical specific capacity (4200 mAh/g) and a low de-lithiation potential. Nevertheless, the inherent challenges of Si, such as low electrical conductivity and significant volume expansion (300 %), contribute to low electrochemical performance. To address this issue, a conductive carbon layer is introduced on Si using a simple and scalable approach. The resulting architecture, known as carbon-encapsulated Si (Si/C), not only improves electrical properties by enhancing Li⁺ diffusion but also mitigates volume expansion, leading to enhanced capacity and cyclic stability. Theoretical findings based on density functional theory (DFT) support these enhancements, confirming improved interactive properties at an atomic scale, including low binding energy and accelerated charge transfer kinetics (higher valence charge transfer) between the Si/C electrode and Li ions. As a result, the ‘binder-free’ and flexible Si/C electrode exhibits a notable initial discharge capacity (3450 mAh/g at 0.05 C) with improved rate capability (3010 mAh/g at 0.1 C). When employed as an anode in LICs, the Si/C electrode exhibits outstanding performance, boasting a large energy density (222.29 Wh/kg), high power density (25 kW/kg), and superior cyclic stability (81.3 % over 10,000 cycles). These findings highlight the potential of the Si/C electrode as a formidable candidate for advanced energy storage applications.