Accelerated Lanthanide Intercalation into Graphite Catalyzed by Na

Abstract

Lanthanides ($Ln$) are notoriously difficult to intercalate into graphite. We investigated the possibility of using Na to catalyze the formation of $Ln$-intercalated graphite and successfully synthesized $Ln$C${}_6$ ($Ln$ = Sm, Eu, and Yb) significantly rapidly in high yields. The synthesis process involves the formation of the reaction intermediate NaC${}_x$, through the mixing of Na and C, which subsequently reacts with $Ln$ upon heating to form $Ln$C${}_6$. Well-sintered $Ln$C${}_6$ pellets with low residual Na concentrations ($Ln$:Na = 98:2) were fabricated by the two-step method. The pellets enabled the evaluation of $Ln$C${}_6$ by powder X-ray diffraction and electrical resistivity measurements. This study highlights the versatility of the Na-catalyzed method and lays the foundation for the rapid mass production of $Ln$C${}_6$, with potential applications in superconducting and rechargeable battery materials.

16 pages, 7 figures

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• Superconductivity in the Intercalated Graphite Compounds C6Yb and C6Ca
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Cited by in corpus (1)

• Room-Temperature Calcium Intercalation into Graphite Catalyzed by Sodium