Free-Standing Poly(vinyl benzoquinone)/Reduced Graphene Oxide Composite Films as a Cathode for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Quinones with a rapid reduction-oxidation rate are promising high-capacity cathodes for lithium-ion batteries. However, the high solubility of quinone molecules in polar organic electrolytes results in low cycle stability, while their low electric conductivity causes low utilization of electrode materials. In this article, a new <i>p</i>-benzoquinone derivative, poly(vinyl benzoquinone) (PVBQ), is designed and synthesized, and a solution-based method of preparing free-standing PVBQ/reduced graphene oxide (RGO) composite films is developed. PVBQ has a high theoretical specific capacity (400 mA h g^-1) because of its low dead moiety mass. In the produced composite films, PVBQ nanoparticles are uniformly dispersed on RGO sheets, which endows the composite films with high electric conductivity and inhibits the dissolution of PVBQ through strong adsorption. As a result, the composite films show a high active material utilization, high practical specific capacity, and excellent cycling stability. PVBQ in the composite membrane containing 60.2 wt % RGO deliver 244 mA h g^-1 capacity after 200 charge-discharge cycles at a current density of 300 mA g^-1. At a current density of 1500 mA g^-1, the reversible specific capacity is still 170 mA h g^-1. This work provides a high-performance cathode material for lithium-ion batteries, and the molecular structure and electrode structure design ideas are also instructive for developing other organic electrode materials.