One-pot fabrication of N-doped hierarchical porous carbon derived from sponge for lithium-ion battery

As the consumption of battery materials and the waste from commercial polyurethane (PU) sponges continue to increase, this study introduces a way to recycle PU sponges and use them as a source of anode material in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). The recycled PU sponge was carbonized to grant it electrical conductivity before applying it as an anode active material, and the particles of carbonized PU sponge (CPUS) were obtained through this process. The CPUS anode displays competitive electrochemical performance because the CPUS particles have hierarchical porous structures and also due to the presence of heteroatoms derived from the PU sponge skeleton. It shows a stable cycle, the capacity obtained is stable for 100 cycles with average capacities of 445 and 490 mAh/g at RT and 50 degrees C, respectively. Additionally, the charge transfer resistance of the CPUS anode is lower than that of the conventional graphite anode. These results indicate that CPUS is a promising anode material for use in the sustainable development of LIBs.