A facile and highly efficient short-time homogenization hydrothermal approach for the smart production of high-quality α-Fe₂O₃ for rechargeable lithium batteries

In the present work, we have synthesized zero-dimensional (0D) and three-dimensional (3D) iron oxide (α-Fe₂O₃) sub-micron particles using a one-pot hydrothermal approach. Morphological studies reveal that the as-synthesized spherical α-Fe₂O₃ (SFO) material consists of nanospheres with void spaces. The prepared SFO delivers a high specific surface area of 100.80 m² g^-1 and significantly increases the contact area between the electrode and the electrolyte. The initial galvanostatic specific capacity of the SFO materials was 1306 mA h g^-1 at a current density of 100 mA g^-1, which is superior to that of bare cubic α-Fe₂O₃ (CFO). Moreover, the mesoporous SFO shows a good cycling stability with a capacity retention rate of 91.4% after 100 cycles. These attractive results suggest that the mesoporous SFO shows a good electrochemical performance as a negative electrode material for high-performance Li-ion batteries.