A Salt-Templated Strategy toward Hollow Iron Selenides-Graphitic Carbon Composite Microspheres with Interconnected...

In this work, a facile salt-templated approach is developed for the preparation of hollow FeSe₂ /graphitic carbon composite microspheres as sodium-ion battery anodes; these are composed of interconnected multicavities and an enclosed surface in-plane embedded with uniform hollow FeSe₂ nanoparticles. As the precursor, Fe₂ O₃ /carbon microspheres containing NaCl nanocrystals are obtained using one-pot ultrasonic spray pyrolysis in which inexpensive NaCl and dextrin are used as a porogen and carbon source, respectively, enabling mass production of the composites. During post-treatment, Fe₂ O₃ nanoparticles in the composites transform into hollow FeSe₂ nanospheres via the Kirkendall effect. These rational structures provide numerous conductive channels to facilitate ion/electron transport and enhance the capacitive contribution. Moreover, the synergistic effect between the hollow cavities within FeSe₂ and the outstanding mechanical strength of the porous carbon matrix can effectively accommodate the large volume changes during cycling. Correspondingly, the composite microsphere exhibits high discharge capacity of 510 mA h g^-1 after 200 cycles at 0.2 A g^-1 with capacity retention of 88% when calculated from the second cycle. Even at a high current density of 5.0 A g^-1 , a high discharge capacity of 417 mA h g^-1 can be achieved.