#The authors contributed equally to this work.
*Correspondence Address: Xiying Li, School of Energy Science and Technology, Henan University, No.379, Mingli Road, Zhengdong New District, Zhengzhou 475004, Henan, China. E-mail: Xiyingli@henu.edu.cn; Baozhong Liu, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Henan Polytechnic University, No.2001, Shiji Road, Gaoxin District, Jiaozuo 454000, Henan, China. E-mail: HPUliuking@163.com; Assoc. Prof. Qingwei Li, State Key Laboratory of Green Papermaking and Resource Recycling, Advanced Research Institute for Multidisciplinary Science, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), No.3501, Daxue Road, Changqing District, Jinan 250307, Shandong, China. E-mail: liqingwei@qlu.edu.cn
Received: 11 Dec 2024 | Revised: 12 Mar 2025 | Accepted: 20 Mar 2025
Abstract
Carbon-based materials, commonly used as commercial anodes in lithium/sodium ion batteries, nevertheless suffer from sluggish kinetic properties. Constructing electrode materials with one-dimensional nanostructures that offer convenient ion/electron transport pathways can improve Li⁺/Na⁺ storage behavior. Recently, metal single-atom doping has also emerged as an effective strategy to enhance storage kinetics. However, it remains challenging to construct one-dimensional carbon materials doped with metal single atoms using simple methods to achieve outstanding Li⁺/Na⁺ storage performance. Herein, three-dimensional intertwined short carbon nanofibers (SCNFs) coupled with single atomic iron dopants were tailored through a hydrothermal strategy followed by high-temperature carbonization free from strong acids etching metals. In the SCNFs, only a trace amount of Fe (0.37 at.%) was introduced; the nitrogen-coordinated Fe single atoms and the nanofibers-intertwined structure promoted Li-ion adsorption, improved diffusion kinetics, and enhanced conductivity, thereby facilitating Li⁺/Na⁺ storage capacity. Acting as an anode in lithium/sodium batteries, SCNFs demonstrated an outstanding electrochemical performance. After assembling lithium ion batteries, the optimal Fe-N-C-2 exhibited a high reversible capacity of 903.4 mAh g-1 at 50 mA g-1 with retention of 518.7 mAh g-1 at 1.0 A g-1. For sodium-ion storage, Fe-N-C-2 preserved excellent high-rate cyclic stability, maintaining 152.6 mAh g-1 after 500 cycles at 0.5 A g-1. Moreover, the hydrothermal method is simple and convenient for large-scale preparation. Our strategy offers a heuristic perspective on the controllable design of nitrogen-coordinated atomic metals for energy storage applications.
Keywords
Single atom, iron doping, carbon nanofibers, sodium storage, lithium storage
Cite This Article
Xue C,Zhang Y, Zhang Y, Wang L, Zhou N, Zhang G, Geng Q, Zheng Y, Li X, Liu B, Li Q. Fe single-atom-regulated carbon nanofibers for high-performance lithium/sodium ion battery anode. Energy Mater. 2025;5:[Accept]. http://dx.doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2024.283