Nitrogen-Deficient Graphitic Carbon Nitride with Enhanced Performance for Lithium Ion Battery Anodes

Abstract

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ) behaving as a layered feature with graphite was indexed as a high-content nitrogen-doping carbon material, attracting increasing attention for application in energy storage devices. However, poor conductivity and resulting serious irreversible capacity loss were pronounced for g-C 3 N 4 material due to its high nitrogen content. In this work, magnesiothermic denitriding technology is demonstrated to reduce the nitrogen content of g-C 3 N 4 (especially graphitic nitrogen) for enhanced lithium storage properties as lithium ion battery anodes. The obtained nitrogen-deficient g-C 3 N 4 (ND-g-C 3 N 4 ) exhibits a thinner and more porous structure composed of an abundance of relatively low nitrogen doping wrinkled graphene nanosheets. A highly reversible lithium storage capacity of 2753 mAh/g was obtained after the 300th cycle with an enhanced cycling stability and rate capability. The presented nitrogen-deficient g-C 3 N 4 with outstanding electrochemical performances may unambiguously promote the application of g-C 3 N 4 materials in energy-storage devices.