Boosting Li/Na storage performance of graphite by defect engineering

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Controlling material properties through structural design is crucial.
• Graphite's structure can be modified to improve energy storage.
• Developing sustainable methods for material modification is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To engineer the defect degree of graphite using a simple and eco-friendly method.
• To analyze the structural defects introduced by mechanical ball milling.
• To evaluate the impact of these defects on lithium and sodium storage performance.

Main Methods:

• Mechanical ball milling was employed for graphite modification.
• Atomic pair distribution function analysis (PDF) was used for structural deconstruction.
• X-ray absorption near-edge structure analysis (XANES) was utilized to characterize defects.

Main Results:

• Mechanical ball milling successfully engineered graphite's defect degree.
• Structural defects were identified primarily as carbon atom vacancies.
• Ball-milled graphite (BMG) demonstrated enhanced lithium and sodium storage capabilities.
• BMG-30 h exhibited superior electrochemical performance.

Conclusions:

• The simple and eco-friendly mechanical ball milling technique effectively introduces carbon vacancies in graphite.
• These structural defects significantly enhance the lithium and sodium storage performance of graphite.
• BMG-30 h represents a promising material for advanced energy storage applications.