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Synthesis of graphitic carbon nitride via direct polymerization using different precursors and its application in lithium–sulfur batteries

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Abstract

The graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) materials were prepared via direct polymerization of urea, melamine, thiourea, and dicyandiamide at the same conditions, respectively. The samples were tested by various characterization tools, so that to study the influences of precursors on the physical and electrochemical properties of g-C3N4. The results showed that the as-prepared U-CN (from urea), M-CN (from melamine), T-CN (from thiourea), and D-CN (from dicyandiamide) exhibited significantly different microstructures. The synthesized g-C3N4 powders were used as sulfur matrixes for lithium–sulfur batteries. The electrochemical properties revealed that urea-derived C3N4 showed the highest initial capacity of 1207 mAh g−1. Furthermore, it possesses excellent cycling stability for 500 cycles and remains capacity of 517 mAh g−1 at 0.37 mA cm−2. This work could provide a new perspective for the selection of proper precursors and the in-depth study of the electrochemical behaviors of the microstructure of g-C3N4.

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 51874146, 51504101), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant Nos. 2018T110551, 2017M621640), the Six Talent Peaks Project of Jiangsu Province (XCL-125), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (Grant No. BK20150514), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Provincial Higher Education of China (Grant No. 15KJB430006), the Start-up Foundation of Jiangsu University for Senior Talents (Grant No. 15JDG014).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Advanced Materials, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212313, People’s Republic of China

    Shanshan Yao, Sikang Xue, Sihuang Peng, Ruiduo Guo, Zongzhen Wu & Xiangqian Shen

  2. Hunan Engineering Laboratory of Power Battery Cathode Materials, Changsha Research Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Changsha, 410012, People’s Republic of China

    Xiangqian Shen, Tianbao Li & Li Wang

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  1. Shanshan Yao
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Correspondence to Shanshan Yao.

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Yao, S., Xue, S., Peng, S. et al. Synthesis of graphitic carbon nitride via direct polymerization using different precursors and its application in lithium–sulfur batteries. Appl. Phys. A 124, 758 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-018-2189-x

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