We here report a method for the facile and large scale preparation of lithium-ion battery anodes based on alpha-Fe2O3 (hematite) nanorods with different textural characteristics and surface composition The method combines electrostatically driven self-assembly approaches with specific adsorption and magnetically easy to disrupt soft aggregates Special emphasis has been set to correlate the textural characteristics (porosity) and surface composition (core core-nanoshell and core-double nanoshells) of nanorods with their electrochemical response Thus we have shown that nanorods present a nanophase whose specific capacity strongly depends on the lithium transport distances (nanorods with slit-shape mesopores running along their long axis vs non-porous or surface blocked nanorods) We have also shown that the capacity retention of this nanophase after several charge-discharge processes depends on maintaining the structural integrity of the nanorods Essential for the success of this latter study has been the use of nanorods that offer a simple tool (oriented X-ray line broadening) to follow their electrochemical grinding Our data suggest that alpha-Fe2O3 mesoporous nanorods could both operate at a voltage and retain a capacity similar to that of nanostructured lithium titanates anodes if actions are taken to prevent electrochemical grinding (C) 2010 Elsevier B V All rights reserved