Ordered sodium zeolite-templated carbon with high first discharge capacity for sodium battery application

A zeolite-templated carbon (ZTC) material was synthesized using a vapor phase impregnation method. This ZTC exhibited an outstandingly high specific surface area of 3100 m 2  g −1 along with a considerable total pore volume of 1.74 cm 3  g −1 . The properties of this ZTC were optimized by controlling the deposition process of the furfuryl alcohol, used as the carbon precursor, on the sodium-bearing zeolite Y template (FAU-type framework structure). The ZTC was then used as a negative electrode in a sodium battery setup. A high first discharge capacity of 1714 mAh·g −1 for the ZTC was obtained, of which 16% was reversible. In addition, atomistic simulations confirmed that a theoretical capacity of 552 mAh·g −1 for the ZTC containing six sodium ions per supercage was reasonably achieved. The new vapor phase impregnation method presented here and applied for the synthesis of ZTC using sodium-bearing zeolites is highly reproducible and scalable, paving the way for the development of future applications.