A novel red phosphorus/reduced graphene oxide-C3N4 composite with enhanced sodium storage capability

Red phosphorus (RP) has attracted wide attention as a promising anode candidate for sodium ion batteries due to its admirable specific capacity, safe working potential and low cost. However, its large volumetric expansion during desodiation/sodiation process and poor electronic conductivity hinder the progress of red phosphorus electrodes. Here, the N-enriched reduced graphene oxide-C3N4 (rGO-C3N4) network is utilized to facilitate the electronic conductivity and construct a robust architecture through PN bonds. Admirable bonding strength between phosphorus and the C3N4 hybrid framework is revealed by the calculations via the first principles based on density function theory. The red phosphorus/rGO-C3N4 anode for sodium ion batteries obtained via a facile ball-milling method exhibits a discharge capacity of 652.6 mA h g−1 after 100 cycles. This method holds great promise on developing red phosphorus anode on sodium-ion batteries.