Progress and innovation of nanostructured sulfur cathodes and metal-free anodes for room-temperature Na–S batteries

• Marina Tabuyo-Martínez,
• Bernd Wicklein and
• Pilar Aranda

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 995–1020, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.75

• , Na dendrite growth, and slow reaction kinetics by nanostructuring both the sulfur cathode and the Na anode. Moreover, a survey of recent patents on room temperature (RT) Na–S batteries revealed that nanostructured sulfur and sodium electrodes are still in the minority, which suggests that much

TiO₂/GO-coated functional separator to suppress polysulfide migration in lithium–sulfur batteries

• Ning Liu,
• Lu Wang,
• Taizhe Tan,
• Yan Zhao and
• Yongguang Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1726–1736, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.168

• but suffer from poor cyclic performance due to the dissolution of intermediate polysulfides. Herein, a lightweight nanoporous TiO2 and graphene oxide (GO) composite is prepared and utilized as an interlayer between a Li anode and a sulfur cathode to suppress the polysulfide migration and improve the

• /GO-coated separator was introduced between the Li anode and sulfur cathode as a highly efficient polysulfide absorber. The TiO2/GO composite was prepared by dealloying, as reported elsewhere [35], and subsequent spray drying. It has been demonstrated that the utilization of the TiO2/GO composite

• separator, which is sandwiched between a sulfur cathode and Li metal and prevents the diffusion of polysulfides. Thereby, the separator inhibits the polysulfide shuttle during the charge/discharge process. At the same time, the coating layer provides an unimpeded pathway for the transmission of Li ions

Trapping polysulfide on two-dimensional molybdenum disulfide for Li–S batteries through phase selection with optimized binding

• Sha Dong,
• Xiaoli Sun and
• Zhiguo Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 774–780, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.77

• is composed of a sulfur cathode and a metallic Li anode, with an organic liquid electrolyte as the ionic conductor, and a porous separator. The Li–S batteries undergo the reaction of 16Li + S8 → 8Li2S, with a simplified reaction sequence of S8 → Li2S8 → Li2S6/Li2S4 → Li2S2/Li2S. Low coulombic

A porous 3D-RGO@MWCNT hybrid material as Li–S battery cathode

• Yongguang Zhang,
• Jun Ren,
• Yan Zhao,
• Taizhe Tan,
• Fuxing Yin and
• Yichao Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 514–521, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.52

• battery technologies. The actual application of Li–S batteries, however, is hindered by several challenges, i.e., i) the poor conductivity of sulfur and ii) the “shuttle effect” of polysulfides (Li2Sx, 4 < x ≤ 8) [1][2][3][4]. To achieve a high specific capacity, a sulfur cathode with high electrical

• conductivity and high sulfur loading is necessary. The shuttle effect will result in rapid fading of the capacity and coulombic efficiency during the cycling process. Therefore, the development of a sulfur cathode that can “withhold” sulfur and reduce the shuttle effect, together with a high conductivity and

• materials, however, have a major drawback, i.e., their electronic conductivity is very low [16][18]. To improve the conductivity of the sulfur cathode, it was typically composited with carbon materials [19][20][21][22][23]. Moreover, the high surface area of the carbon substrate was beneficial for a higher

Synthesis and characterization of electrospun molybdenum dioxide–carbon nanofibers as sulfur matrix additives for rechargeable lithium–sulfur battery applications

• Ruiyuan Zhuang,
• Shanshan Yao,
• Maoxiang Jing,
• Xiangqian Shen,
• Jun Xiang,
• Tianbao Li,
• Kesong Xiao and
• Shibiao Qin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 262–270, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.28

• electrochemical performance than a pristine sulfur cathode. Results and Discussion Characterization of MoO2–CNFs X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of the as-prepared composite fibers calcined at various temperatures are presented in Figure 1a. Well-defined features appeared for the samples heated at 550 °C due to

• sulfur cathode, the cathode performance clearly improved when MoO2–CNFs were present in the sulfur matrix. The initial discharge capacity of the S/MoO2–CNF cathodes with MoO2–CNFs calcined at 550, 650, 750, and 850 °C were recorded as 816, 1082, 1079, and 1095 mAh g−1, respectively. The improved

• effect of the MoO2–CNF matrix material calcined at different temperatures on the electrochemical performance of the sulfur cathode. Compared to the CV technique, the diffusion coefficients under equilibrium conditions can be expressed by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Additionally, the

Mesoporous hollow carbon spheres for lithium–sulfur batteries: distribution of sulfur and electrochemical performance

• Anika C. Juhl,
• Artur Schneider,
• Boris Ufer,
• Torsten Brezesinski,
• Jürgen Janek and
• Michael Fröba

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1229–1240, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.114

• slurry coating and drying procedure are described elsewhere [47][48]. 50–60 µm thick electrodes with a sulfur loading of approx. 2.0 mg·cm−2 were used for testing. Sulfur cathode, polyethylene membrane (Toray Tonen, 15 mm) and lithium foil (Chemetall Foote Corp., 50 µm) were assembled in coin-type cells

From lithium to sodium: cell chemistry of room temperature sodium–air and sodium–sulfur batteries

• Philipp Adelhelm,
• Pascal Hartmann,
• Conrad L. Bender,
• Martin Busche,
• Christine Eufinger and
• Juergen Janek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1016–1055, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.105

AFM as an analysis tool for high-capacity sulfur cathodes for Li–S batteries

• Renate Hiesgen,
• Seniz Sörgel,
• Rémi Costa,
• Linus Carlé,
• Ines Galm,
• Natalia Cañas,
• Brigitta Pascucci and
• K. Andreas Friedrich

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 611–624, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.68

• particles. Based on the analytical findings, the first results of an optimized cathode showed a much improved discharge capacity of 800 mA·g(sulfur)−1 after 43 cycles. Keywords: conductive AFM; high capacity; lithium-sulfur batteries; material-sensitive AFM; sulfur cathode; Introduction Lithium

• -material and parasitic reactions of dissolved polysulfides at the Li electrode and (3) the morphological and volumetric changes of the cathode material upon cycling [3][4]. The redox reaction of the sulfur cathode can only occur when the sulfur is in contact with the carbon because of the insulating nature

• the SC-CMC samples were prepared by spraying, it was not possible to obtain a reversible capacity, which is most likely due to the formation of a crust-like layer on the cathode surface upon cycling (Figure 2f). As one can see in Figure 2e, the application of a CMC binder in a sulfur cathode caused