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Nanosheet cupric oxide (CuO) was synthesized by a hydrothermal synthesis method and itselectrochemical performance was tested with Li metal as the reference anode. ThisCuO electrode showed a good capacity retention with a reversible capacity of400 mA h g−1 during up to 100 cycles. Copper (Cu) nanoparticles were produced and separated from thelithiated CuO electrode. Structural analyses by means of electron microscopy (fieldemission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy) indicatedthat rather uniform spherical copper particles of 30–40 nm were obtained. These coppernanoparticles were collected as the lithiation product and this electrochemical reductionmethod was put forward as a new approach for synthesizing metal nanoparticles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]