Highly N-doped, H-containing mesoporous carbon with modulated physicochemical properties as high-performance anode materials for Li-ion and Na-ion batteries

Abstract A series of N-doped mesoporous carbon (NMC) materials are synthesized by the co-pyrolysis of an N-containing compound and carbon sources using a modified nanocasting method. The physicochemical properties are manipulated by changing the amount of resol precursors to permit the usage of these materials in the desired applications. As anodes for Li-ion batteries, the prepared NMC2, which has the highest number of hydrogenated N functional groups, delivers a high discharge capacity of 900, 700, and 600 mAh g−1 at current densities of 0.5, 1, and 2 A g−1, respectively, after 200 cycles of discharging and charging. Even at an extremely high current density of 10 A g−1, the NMC2 electrode delivers a discharge capacity of 300 mA g−1. In addition, in Na-ion batteries, NMC3, which has the highest pyridinic N content and average pore diameters, exhibits a discharge capacity of 163 mAh g−1 at 1 A g−1 over 500 cycles. Hence, an intimate relationship between the key physicochemical parameters and electrochemical properties of NMC materials are established for use of these materials in specific applications. The obtained results demonstrate that the fabricated NMC materials possess superior characteristics in comparison to those of most state-of-the-art porous carbon materials.