In this work, porous carbon matrix derived from metal-organic frameworks is synthesized by a facile carbonation process for confining element selenium. The Se/nitrogen-doped porous carbon composite is applied as the cathode for rechargeable K-Se batteries for the first time. The abundant and hierarchical porous structure is advantageous in overcoming the volume expansion problem caused by polyselenides during discharge-charge process. The in-situ nitrogen-doped porous carbon enhances electronic conductivity of the cathode composite material. The electrochemical result shows that the as-obtained Se/nitrogen-doped porous carbon composite with Se content of 53% delivers good rate capacity with coulombic efficiency of nearly similar to 90% and a reversible cycling capacity of 327 mA h g(-1) at 0.2 C, maintaining about 130 mA h g(-1) even after 100 cycles. (C) 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.