Cathode Materials for Rechargeable Lithium‐Sulfur Batteries: Current Progress and Future

Conductive Polymer-Based Interlayers in Restraining the Polysulfide Shuttle of Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

Lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs) are considered a promising candidate for next-generation energy storage devices due to the advantages of high theoretical specific capacity, abundant resources and being environmentally friendly. However, the severe shuttle effect of polysulfides causes the low utilization of active substances and rapid capacity fading, thus seriously limiting their practical application. The introduction of conductive polymer-based interlayers between cathodes and separators is considered to be an effective method to solve this problem because they can largely confine, anchor and convert the soluble polysulfides. In this review, the recent progress of conductive polymer-based interlayers used in LSBs is summarized, including free-standing conductive polymer-based interlayers, conductive polymer-based interlayer modified separators and conductive polymer-based interlayer modified sulfur electrodes. Furthermore, some suggestions on rational design and preparation of conductive polymer-based interlayers are put forward to highlight the future development of LSBs.

Cement/Sulfur for Lithium-Sulfur Cells

Lithium-sulfur batteries represent a promising class of next-generation rechargeable energy storage technologies, primarily because of their high-capacity sulfur cathode, reversible battery chemistry, low toxicity, and cost-effectiveness. However, they lack a tailored cell material and configuration for enhancing their high electrochemical utilization and stability. This study introduces a cross-disciplinary concept involving cost-efficient cement and sulfur to prepare a cement/sulfur energy storage material. Although cement has low conductivity and porosity, our findings demonstrate that its robust polysulfide adsorption capability is beneficial in the design of a cathode composite. The cathode composite attains enhanced cell fabrication parameters, featuring a high sulfur content and loading of 80 wt% and 6.4 mg cm-2, respectively. The resulting cell with the cement/sulfur cathode composite exhibits high active-material retention and utilization, resulting in a high charge storage capacity of 1189 mA∙h g-1, high rate performance across C/20 to C/3 rates, and an extended lifespan of 200 cycles. These attributes contribute to excellent cell performance values, demonstrating areal capacities ranging from 4.59 to 7.61 mA∙h cm-2, an energy density spanning 9.63 to 15.98 mW∙h cm-2, and gravimetric capacities between 573 and 951 mA∙h g-1 per electrode. Therefore, this study pioneers a new approach in lithium-sulfur battery research, opting for a nonporous material with robust polysulfide adsorption capabilities, namely cement. It effectively showcases the potential of the resulting cement/sulfur cathode composite to enhance fabrication feasibility, cell fabrication parameters, and cell performance values.