The applications of carbon nanotubes and graphene in advanced rechargeable lithium batteries

Advanced rechargeable lithium batteries are desired energy storage devices for electric vehicles. These batteries require their electrodes to have high electrical and thermal conductivity, an appropriate high specific surface area, an outstanding hierarchical architecture, high thermal and chemical stability and to be relatively low cost and environmentally benign. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene are two candidate materials that could meet these requirements, and thus have been widely studied. The present paper reviews the applications of CNTs and graphene in batteries, with an emphasis on the particular roles (such as conductive, active, flexible and supporting roles) they play in advanced lithium batteries. We will summarize the unique advantages of CNTs and graphene in battery applications, update the most recent progress, and compare the prospects and challenges of CNTs and graphene for future full utilization in energy storage applications. The effects and mechanisms of heteroatoms doping, the distribution of pore sizes, different architectures (anchored, sandwich-like and wrapped hybrid architecture) are discussed in detail.