Unlocking Kinetic Limitations in Hard‐Carbon Anodes to Enable Practical Fast‐Charging Sodium‐Ion Batteries

ABSTRACT Hard carbons are considered to be the most promising anode materials for sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs) because of their low cost and high sodium storage performance. However, the inadequate rate performance of hard carbon remains a critical bottleneck hindering high‐power applications of SIBs. Herein, we elucidate the key structural descriptors underlying the rate‐performance failure mechanism by constructing hard carbon with tailored microstructures, achieved via precise regulation of precursor composition. It is worth noting that the hard carbons engineered with the aforementioned differentiated structural design exhibit similar thermodynamic behaviors for sodium storage, but markedly different…

• NN
  National Natural Science Foundation of China

  Awards: 52402302, 52250710680, 52503402
• HF
  High-end Foreign Experts Recruitment Plan of China

  Award: G2023016009L
• KR
  Key Research and Development Program of Zhejiang Province

  Awards: 2023C01232, 2024C01057