Spinel Li4Mn5O12, a well-known 3 V Li-ion battery (LIB) material with excellent cycling stability and good rate capability, is examined as Na-ion battery (NIB) cathode for the first time. Electrochemical studies clearly show that Na ions can be reversibly inserted into and extracted from the three-dimensional spinel structure. However, unlike in LIB, the available capacity in NIB is strongly dependent on the particle size and current rate due to the sluggish Na-ion transport in solid phase. Cycle performance of Li4Mn5O12 in NIB is also inferior to that in LIB. Ex-situ X-ray diffraction study indicates a gradual loss of crystallinity with cycling, and that the crystal lattice undergoes an irreversible expansion during the initial 20 cycles. Inductively coupled plasma spectroscopy shows a decrease of Li/Mn ratio in Li4Mn5O12 with cycling. The results suggest that Li ions are removed from the material during the charging process. The chargedischarge mechanism is also discussed in the paper. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.