A high capacity MnFe2O4/rGO nanocomposite for Li and Na-ion battery applicationsElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: TGA, CV and cyclic stability for pure MnFe2O4. See DOI: 10.1039/c5ra11439j

A porous MnFe 2 O 4 /reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanocomposite with high storage capacity was prepared by a hydrothermal method. The MnFe 2 O 4 /rGO nanocomposite sample was characterized by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The electrochemical characteristics with lithium as well as sodium were studied using cyclic voltammetry and a battery cycle tester. In this work, apart from the lithium storage, the sodium storage ability of the spinel type MnFe 2 O 4 as an anode is demonstrated for the first time. The prepared MnFe 2 O 4 /rGO composite with sodium alginate binder shows a highly stable capacity of 905 mA h g −1 versus Li/Li + and 258 mA h g −1 versus Na/Na + at 0.1C rate. The enhancement in capacity and excellent cycleability of the MnFe 2 O 4 /reduce graphene oxide nanocomposite is due to constrained volume expansion during conversion reactions and enhancement of electrical conductivity. Hydrothermally synthesized MnFe 2 O 4 /rGO composite with sodium alginate binder shows a highly stable capacity of 258 mA h g −1 versus Na/Na + at 0.1C rate.