Evaluation of Alloys Synthesized by Mechanical Alloying as Potential Anode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Several alloys (Mg2Si, Li4Mg2Si, Sn0.66Sb0.34, and Li4Sn0.72Sb0.28) have been synthesized by mechanical alloying and characterized for their performance as anode materials for Li-ion batteries. Sn0.66Sb0.34 shows a better cycling performance than Mg2Si, whose higher initial capacities fade after a few cycles only. The pre-lithiated materials Li4Mg2Si and Li4Sn0.72Sb0.28 give good cycling stabilities, however, at much smaller capacities than exhibited by their unlithiated counterparts.