Ion-crosslink alginate emulsion droplets toward synthesis of porous carbon microspheres as anodes for lithium-ion batteries

Abstract

Porous carbon microsphere (PCM) is an important anode material for lithium-ion batteries; however, the preparation of PCM at large scale is still complex, sometimes even needing sophisticated instruments. Herein, we developed a water-in-oil (W/O) phase-separation strategy to prepare PCM in terms of simple and low-cost manner. As-prepared PCM has a large surface area of 182 m2/g, and abundant mesopores, which benefits the penetration of Li+-carrying electrolyte into the electrode. Therefore, the optimized PCM electrode shows a high-rate capability (408 mA h g−1 at 2 A/g). This work broadens a new vision in preparing PCM for energy-storage/-conversion applications.