Effect of cotton stalk particle size on the structure of biochar and the performance of anode for lithium-ion battery

Cotton stalk biochar (CSCs) as anode material of lithium-ion battery (LIB) is studied. The effect of particle size on structural and electrochemical characteristics of derived carbon materials were investigated. There was a sig-nificant change on the structural characteristics of pyrolytic carbon when the cotton stalk particle size was less than 200 mu m, especially the pore below 4 nm. The carbonized products obtained from cotton stalk with particle size of 100-200 and 450-2000 mu m reached the maximal interlayer spacing (0.388 nm) and pore volume (0.285 cm3g-1). Meanwhile, the better tubular structure existed in the pyrolytic carbon produced from cotton stalk with larger particle size. The biochar prepared from cotton stalk with the particle size of 450-2000 mu m exhibited the largest Li+ diffusion coefficient (1.47 x 10(-11) cm(2) s(-1)), and the best electrochemical performance, which showed a larger specific capacity of 271.7 mAh g(-1) after 100 cycles at 0.1 Ag-1. The structure of biochar can be effectively controlled through changing the particle size of cotton stalk, which provides a more low-energy and environ-mentally friendly idea for the preparation carbon materials in the future.

Automated summary

The effect of particle size on the structure and electrochemical characteristics of cotton stalk biochar as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries was investigated. The study found that by changing the particle size of cotton stalk, the structure of biochar can be controlled effectively, offering a low-energy and environmentally friendly method for the preparation of carbon materials in the future.