Chemically bonded phosphorus/graphene hybrid as a high performance anode for sodium-ion batteries

Room temperature sodium-ion batteries are of great interest for high-energy-density energy storage systems because of low-cost and natural abundance of sodium. Here, we report a novel phosphorus/graphene nanosheet hybrid as a high performance anode for sodium-ion batteries through facile ball milling of red phosphorus and graphene stacks. The graphene stacks are mechanically exfoliated to nanosheets that chemically bond with the surfaces of phosphorus particles. This chemical bonding can facilitate robust and intimate contact between phosphorus and graphene nanosheets, and the graphene at the particle surfaces can help maintain electrical contact and stabilize the solid electrolyte interphase upon the large volume change of phosphorus during cycling. As a result, the phosphorus/graphene nanosheet hybrid nanostructured anode delivers a high reversible capacity of 2077 mAh/g with excellent cycling stability (1700 mAh/g after 60 cycles) and high Coulombic efficiency (>98%). This simple synthesis approach and unique nanostructure can potentially be applied to other phosphorus-based alloy anode materials for sodium-ion batteries.