Rate performance enhancement of anode for lithium-ion battery via composition of hard carbon and silicon-carbon nanofiber

The internal-pore introduced hybridized materials with hard carbon and specially prepared silicon-carbon nanofiber composite have been prepared from mechanical mixing and continuous carbonization processes. The effective additions of 10-30 wt% of silicon-carbon nanofiber composites into hard carbon matrix improved the rate performance as well as discharge capacity very much. The prepared hybridized materials through the 10 and 30 wt% addition of the silicon-carbon nanofiber composites into hard carbons showed the discharge capacity retention rates of over 87.8% and 89.4% even at 3,000 mA g^-1 (over 6C) and high discharge capacities of 337 and 441 mAh g^-1, respectively. The artificial introduction of the appropriate amounts internal pores into hard carbon matrix with silicon-carbon nanofiber composite can effectively enhance the high rate performance as well as the discharge capacity without compromising the 1^st cycle coulombic efficiency.