Next Article in Journal
Development of Detection and Volumetric Methods for the Triceps of the Lower Leg Using Magnetic Resonance Images with Deep Learning
Next Article in Special Issue
Study on the Variable Speed Diesel Generator and Effects on Structure Vibration Behavior in the DC Grid
Previous Article in Journal
On Simulating the Propagation and Countermeasures of Hate Speech in Social Networks
Previous Article in Special Issue
Enhancing SERS Intensity by Coupling PSPR and LSPR in a Crater Structure with Ag Nanowires
 
 
Article
Peer-Review Record

S and P Dual-Doped Carbon Nanospheres as Anode Material for High Rate Performance Sodium-Ion Batteries

Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(24), 12007; https://doi.org/10.3390/app112412007
by Hyeon-Su Yang 1,2, Si-Wan Kim 1,2, Kwang-Ho Kim 3,4, Sung-Hwan Yoon 2,5, Min-Jae Ha 6 and Jun Kang 2,5,*
Reviewer 1: Anonymous
Reviewer 2: Anonymous
Reviewer 3: Anonymous
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(24), 12007; https://doi.org/10.3390/app112412007
Submission received: 18 November 2021 / Revised: 7 December 2021 / Accepted: 11 December 2021 / Published: 16 December 2021

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

I accurately reviewed the manuscript with the number of «applsci-1492881» Title: S and P dual-doped carbon nanospheres as anode material for high-rate performance sodium-ion batteries. Submitted to Applied Sciences. The synthesis of such S and P co-doped carbon is a common work and their electrochemical properties are also at the normal level. Particularly, it seems that manuscript has been prepared with a minimal accuracy. There are remarkable errors in the work. Therefore, I cannot recommend the publication on Applied Sciences. Below are my detailed comments and questions.

  • I am not agree with this sentence: “From the SEM image (Fig. 2), it was confirmed that the particles of SP/C were ball-shaped, similar to carbon black, and were connected to each other.” This conclusion cannot be drawn from the figure, high-resolution SEM and TEM photos need to be added.
  • Figure 3b shows that the specific surface area of SP/C material is very small, but the author's test results show up to 92.06 m2 g-1, I think the data is wrong.
  • Figure 5b shows that the material has a very low Coulomb Efficiency at high current densities, which needs to be given an accurate interpretation.
  • Figure 6 shows that the contribution of the pseudocapacitor hardly changes as the sweep speed increases, I think this result needs further verification.

Author Response

Please see the attachment.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

The authors synthesized S and P co-doped carbon material (SP/C) using a simple and one-step plasma-in-liquid process and assembled it as anode material in the sodium-ion half-cell. Benefiting from the abundant macropores in SP/C, a remarkable cycling life of 3,000 cycles at a high current density of 10 A g-1 with a high reversible capacity over 125 mAh g-1 was achieved. The investigations on reaction kinetics showed that most of the capacity could be attributed to a fast capacitive process. Overall, this manuscript is well-written with sufficient findings. I would recommend the publication in Applied Sciences after minor revision. Here are some suggestions:

  1. As the author mentioned, SP/C is a nanomaterial; it is better to include some high magnification SEM or TEM to demonstrate the diameter and morphology of SP/C.
  2. It is also suggested to add the XRD pattern of undoped carbon in Figure 3 to check the structural changes caused by S and P doping.
  3. Figure 5: Please provide the Coulombic efficiency as well in Figure 5.

 

Author Response

Please see the attachment.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 3 Report

In this paper, the authors present the synthesis and characterisation of  S and P dual-doped carbon nanospheres using plasma-in-liquid process; the synthetized is material could be use as anode material for high-rate performance sodium-ion batteries.

The authors state that the synthetized S and P co-doped carbon material exhibits high initial coulombic efficiency and excellent reversible capacity with a long cycling life.

The characterization of the synthesized material was performed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD). Specific surface areas were evaluated using the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) method. Pore sizes were determined using the Barrett Joyner–Halenda (BJH) and micropore analysis (MP).

General comments

  • Novelty or purpose of the study is not stated clearly. Please, clearly state the novelty of the presented paper at the end of the introduction part; reformulate the objective of the paper and indicate all the characterization methods of the synthetized material.
  • The manuscript contains descriptions of studies that have been planned, carried out and interpreted. There are sufficient details given to replicate the proposed experimental procedures for synthesis of S and P dual-doped carbon nanospheres and electrochemical measurements.
  • Interpretations based on the investigations of the synthesis of S and P dual-doped carbon nanospheres, obtained by X-ray diffraction and SEM-EDS need to be clarified.

 The specific comments are as follows:

 Material characterization

  • Morphologies of the synthesis of S and P dual-doped carbon nanospheres were observed only by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and HRTEM determinations would be useful for the characterization of the S and P dual-doped carbon nanospheres.
  • in the section Results and discussion there are information regarding the characterization of the material synthesized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) in this section there is no information about XRD characterization method and used device

Results and discussion

  • Figure 2 - The SEM and elemental mapping images quality are poor and needs to be improved. It is recommended to take SEM images at less than 2 to support the statements presented in Line 96-104. Also, the elemental mapping images should be accompanied by elemental distributions of P, S and C.
  • it is recommended to use the XRD results to calculate interlayer spacing, FWHM values and microcrystalline parameters and correlated with the BET information.

Author Response

Please see the attachment.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

Accept in present form

Reviewer 3 Report

  • the authors responded to the comments that I made at the first review
  • I maintain the observation of too many self-citations by author Jun Kang
Back to TopTop