Several V2O5 nanostructures including nanowires, nanowaxberries and nanoflowers were successfully synthesized via a hydrothermal process with NH4VO3 as precursor and polymer polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) as surfactant. In the synthesis process, morphologies of the products are found to be sensitive to the concentration of the surfactant. Electrochemical properties measurements of these three nanostructures are performed, showing that V2O5 nanoflowers have the best stability and highest Li ion diffusion coefficient compared to other two kinds of structures, which is most suitable for application in Li-ion battery electrodes. Moreover, field emission (FE) measurements are also performed, showing that these nanostructures possess excellent field emission properties, in which V2O5 nanowaxberries have the lowest turn-on field, threshold field and the highest field-enhancement factor of 2.9 V/mu m, 5.7 V/mu m and 2468, respectively, making them a promising material for field emitters. (c) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.