Abstract: Cellulose has attracted much attention due to their eco-friendly property and low cost. Recently, it could be widely used in fields of electrochemical research as an efficient carbon material. Fe₃O₄/C-CNFA nanocomposite was prepared by a solvothermal method while ferric trichloride hexahydrate as the iron source and carbonized cellulose nanofiber aerogel as the carrier. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy were employed to characterize the structure and micro-morphology of the as-prepared nanomaterial. Meanwhile, electrochemical properties were also measured to compared with pure Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles. The results show that carbonized cellulose nanofiber aerogel maintains the 3D porous network and Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles with uniform size are uniformly distributed in the carbon matrix. Fe₃O₄/C-CNFA nanocomposite demonstrates an excellent cycling stability with a reversible capacity of 847 mA·h·g^-1 over 100 cycles at a current density of 100 mA·g^-1, as well as an initial specific discharge capacity of 1064 mA·h·g^-1. Compared to pure Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles, the electrochemical properties of the synthesized nanomaterials have been greatly improved. This study is beneficial for promoting the application of cellulose based carbon material in electrochemical field. Furthermore, it also provides experimental basis for the development of composite electrode material.

Key words: cellulose, aerogel, Fe₃O₄, lithium-ion battery, anode material