Silicon (Si), due to its wide availability and highest theoretical capacity (4200 mAh·g⁻¹) amongst other anode candidates, has drawn tremendous attention as a promising alternative of the existing graphitic anode in current-generation lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). However, the greatest challenge associated with using Si anodes is the huge volume changes which occur during the lithiation-delithiation process and result in pulverization of the electrode which shortens battery life. In this work, the thick and slimy mucilage from commonly cultivated okra pods is extracted, precipitated, and used as the binder to solve the challenges of silicon anodes. The extracted okra gum (OG) consisting of abundant branched polysaccharides, a non-toxic, bio-friendly, and water-soluble polymer offers excellent penetrating binding network and interfacial chemical binding forces. As a result, the as-prepared Si-OG electrode displays a discharge capacity of 1434 mAh·g⁻¹ at a rate of 0.1C after 50 cycles which is about 1.5 times greater than that of the Si- carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) electrode. This improvement could be attributed to the greater Si-anchoring and viscoelastic properties of the OG binder than that of the CMC binder. The success of this work suggests that this sustainable, green, and low-cost okra gum binder is promising in constructing reliable silicon anodes for next-generation large energy capacity LIBs.

硅（Si），由于其广泛的可用性和最高的理论容量（4200 mAh·g ^-1）在其他阳极候选材料中，作为当今锂离子电池（LIB）中现有石墨阳极的有希望替代方法已引起了极大的关注。然而，与使用硅阳极相关的最大挑战是在锂化-脱锂过程中发生的巨大体积变化，并导致电极粉化，这缩短了电池寿命。在这项工作中，从通常栽培的秋葵荚中提取粘稠的粘液，使其沉淀，然后用作解决硅阳极难题的粘合剂。提取的秋葵胶（OG）由丰富的支链多糖组成，是一种无毒，对生物友好的水溶性聚合物，具有出色的渗透结合网络和界面化学结合力。因此，在50个循环后以0.1C的^-1速率加热，比Si-羧甲基纤维素（CMC）电极的速率高约1.5倍。这种改进可以归因于OG粘合剂比CMC粘合剂具有更高的硅锚固性和粘弹性。这项工作的成功表明，这种可持续的，绿色的，低成本的秋葵胶粘合剂有望为下一代大能量容量的LIB构建可靠的硅阳极。