Solid carbon from methane pyrolysis used as an anode material for sodium-ion batteries

Methane pyrolysis is regarded as a promising alternative to steam methane reforming （the currently dominant industrial hydrogen production process） due to its zero CO2 emission.Upgrading the value of solid carbon products is crucial for achieving efficient and economical hydrogen production via methane pyrolysis.In this study， liquid metal Cu0.33Sn0.67 was used to catalyze methane pyrolysis for solid carbon collection.SEM characterization of the solid carbon products showed that they mainly exhibited lamellar structure with minor spherical carbon particles.Raman spectroscopy indicated an ID/IG ratio of 1.24~1.47， suggesting abundant defects and relatively low graphitization degree in the products.To evaluate the feasibility of using the solid carbon products as anode materials for sodium-ion batteries， pretreatment methods including purification and ball milling were conducted.The results showed that both methods significantly improved the cycling performance and capacity of sodium-ion batteries.This study provides practical references for enhancing the value of solid carbon products from methane pyrolysis.