A New Method for the Preparation of Fine-Grained SnO2 and WO3 Powders: Influence of the Crystallite Size on the Electrochemical Insertion of Li+ in SnO2 and WO3 Electrodes

Abstract

We propose an unconventional method to obtain fine-grained SnO2 and WO3 powders. It uses as precursors, polymer complexes between polyethylene oxide (POE) and SnCl4 or WCl6 respectively. By pyrolysis of these complexes in the 350-550℃ temperature range, metal-oxide powders possessing small crystallite sizes are obtained. They are free from water and hydroxyl group contaminations, which is an added advantage where the application of these materials to Li-batteries is concerned. We have, indeed, demonstrated that these powders show good ability to insert reversibly lithium ions in the Li/ Li+/SnO2 (WO3) cells.