Charged up: revolutionizing rechargeable sodium-ion batteries with 'doped' carbon anodes
Doping carbon anode material with different atoms increases the performance of sodium-ion batteries
Korea Maritime and Ocean University
To this end, researchers at Korea Maritime and Ocean University, Korea, set out to find a suitable non-graphite anode material for SIBs. Dr Jun Kang, the lead scientist, says, "Because SIBs have low performance--only 1/10th the capacity of a lithium-ion battery--it is crucial to find an efficient anode that retains graphite's low cost and stability."
Now, in their latest study published in the Journal of Power Sources, the scientists reported the following strategies to overcome the limitations of carbon-based anode materials for SIBs: (1) Employing a hierarchical porous structure capable of promoting rapid Na+ transport from the bulk zone of the electrolyte to the interface of the active material; (2) retaining large specific surface areas where Na+ migrates to the interface, which can be easily accessed in the active material; (3) retaining surface defects and pore structures that enable co-intercalation from the surface to the interior; (4) retaining nanostructures in Na+ inserted into the active material from defects and pores that can have short diffusion paths; and (5) increasing the number of active sites due to extrinsic defects that result from these elements through hetero-element doping. These strategies led to the electrochemical performance of the battery being significantly improved, even surpassing that of current lithium-ion batteries!
In two of their previous studies, they successfully tested this method using phosphorus and sulfur, which were featured on the cover pages of Carbon and ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, respectively.
Dr Kang is optimistic about the various potential applications of their technology, such as in electric propulsion ships and other vehicles, drones, and even high-performance CPUs. "These five factors afford good capacity retention, reversible capacity, ultrahigh cycling stability, high initial coulombic efficiency (80%), and remarkable rate capability. This means they can be used for a long time even with intense battery use," he explains.
Considering the advantages of sodium over lithium, these findings certainly have important implications for the engineering of sustainable, inexpensive, high-performance batteries and can take us a step closer to the realization of an energy-efficient future.
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The topic world Battery Technology combines relevant knowledge in a unique way. Here you will find everything about suppliers and their products, webinars, white papers, catalogs and brochures.