Al₂O₃-Assisted Confinement Synthesis of Oxide/Carbon Hollow Composite Nanofibers and Application in Metal-Ion Capacitors

Hollow micro-/nanostructures are widely explored for energy applications due to their unique structural advantages. The synthesis of hollow structures generally involves a “top-down” casting process based on hard or soft templates. Herein, a new and generic confinement strategy is developed to fabricate composite hollow fibers. A thin and homogeneous atomic-layer-deposition (ALD) Al₂O₃ layer is employed to confine the pyrolysis of precursor fibers, which transform into metal (or metal oxide)–carbon composite hollow fibers after removal of Al₂O₃. Because of the uniform coating by ALD, the resultant composite hollow fibers exhibit a hollow interior from heads to ends even if they are millimeter long. V, Fe, Co, and Ni-based hollow nanofibers, demonstrating the versatility of this synthesis method, are successfully synthesized. Because of the carbon constituent, these composite fibers are particularly useful for energy applications. Herein, the as-obtained hollow V₂O₃–C fiber membrane is employed as a freestanding and flexible electrode for lithium-ion capacitor. The device shows an impressive energy density and a high power density.