Doping carbon electrodes with sulfur achieves reversible sodium ion storage

We present a combination of experiments and theory to study the effect of sulfur doping in hard carbons anodes for sodium-ion batteries. Hard carbons are synthesised through a two step process: hydrothermal carbonisation followed by pyrolysis of a biomass-derived carbon precursor. Subsequent sulfur doping is introduced via chemical-vapour deposition. The resulting sulfur-doped hard carbon shows enhanced sodium storage capacity with respect to the pristine material, with significantly improved cycling reversibility. Atomistic first principles simulations give insight into this behaviour, revealing that sulfur chemisorbed onto the hard carbon increases the sodium adsorption energies and facilitates sodium desorption. This mechanism would increase reversible Na storage, confirming our experimental observations and opening a pathway towards more efficient Na-ion batteries.

Automated summary

In this study, the effect of sulfur doping on hard carbon anodes for sodium-ion batteries is investigated using a combination of experiments and theory. The hard carbons are synthesized through a two-step process and subsequent sulfur doping is introduced via chemical-vapour deposition. The sulfur-doped hard carbon exhibits enhanced sodium storage capacity and improved cycling reversibility, which is attributed to the increased sodium adsorption energies and facilitated sodium desorption due to the sulfur chemisorbed onto the hard carbon. This study provides insights into the mechanism and opens up possibilities for more efficient sodium-ion batteries.