Uniformly dispersing Sb2Se3 nanoparticles in porous carbon as an anode material for enhancing sodium storage capacity†

About 60 nm Sb₂Se₃ nanoparticles are uniformly embedded in a porous carbon substrate to prepare a Sb₂Se₃/C composite through a combination of pyrolysis reduction and solid-phase selenization. The Sb₂Se₃/C anode exhibits excellent sodium storage capacity. The initial discharge capacity is up to 420 mA h g⁻¹ at 0.1 A g⁻¹, and the specific capacity still remains 339 mA h g⁻¹ after 1000 cycles, with a high capacity retention rate of 80%.