Hierarchical porous carbon spheres as an anode material for lithium ion batteries

Abstract

Hierarchical porous carbon spheres are prepared by the carbonization of a D201 anion-exchange resin. These carbon spheres are characterized by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, nitrogen adsorption–desorption and electron microscopy. The lithium ion storage capacity of these carbon spheres is evaluated by galvanostatic measurements. The initial discharge–charge capacities of the material are 1213 and 798 mA h g⁻¹ at a current density of 0.1 A g⁻¹, respectively. A discharge capacity of 506 mA h g⁻¹ is still retained when charge–discharged at 1.0 A g⁻¹ for 50 cycles. The large reversible capacity, high rate performance and good cycleability are attributed to the unique hierarchical porous structure featured by large surface area, readily accessed porous channels and the highly graphitized carbon shells. The carbonization of a cheap anion-exchange resin can be easily scaled-up, making the hierarchical porous carbon spheres a promising low-cost anode material for high performance lithium ion batteries.