Researchers have demonstrated a process to prepare morphologically tailored carbon materials with good electrochemical capacity and stability for sodium-ion battery anodes. Hard-carbon materials are considered as one of the most promising anode constituents for the emerging sodium-ion batteries.
Tire-derived carbons obtained by heat-treating sulfonated tire rubber had good sodium storage, with good electrochemical stability. The interlayer distances determined from high-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy of crystalline areas were determined to be ideal for sodium intercalation. Recycling hazardous wastes to produce value-added products is becoming essential for the sustainable progress of society. The strategy used in this research may be applied to other rechargeable batteries including potassium-ion batteries to achieve even higher electrochemical performance and cycling stability.
Yunchao Li, M. Parans Paranthaman, Kokouvi Akato, Amit K. Naskar, Alan M. Levine, Richard J. Lee, Sang-Ok Kim, Jinshui Zhang, Sheng Dai, and Arumugam Manthiram, “Tire-derived carbon composite anodes for sodium-ion batteries,” J. Power Sources 316, 232–238 (2016). DOI:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2016.03.071
