Harnessing Heteropolar Lithium Polysulfides by Amphoteric Polymer Binder for Facile Manufacturing of Practical Li-S Batteries

Shizhen Li, Wenshan Xiao, Hainam Do, Hangqi Yang, Xiaoqi Xu, Chuang Peng

Research output: Journal PublicationArticlepeer-review

14 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Enabling efficient and durable charge storage under high sulfur loading and lean electrolyte remains a paramount challenge for Li-S battery technology to truly demonstrate its commercial viability. This work reports an amphoteric polymer binder, whose negatively and positively charged moieties allow for coregulation of both lithium cations and heteropolar lithium polysulfides through multiple intermolecular interactions. These interactions and the physical properties lead to simultaneously improved Li+ transport, polysulfide adsorption and catalysis, cathode robustness and anode stability. Therefore, this multifunctional binder endows Li-S batteries with compelling overall performances even under rigorous conditions. At low sulfur loading and copious electrolyte, the cell shows a low capacity-fading rate of 0.056% cycle-1 upon 700 cycles. At sulfur loading of 6.8 mg cm–2 and low E/S of 6 µL mg–1, the cell still delivers stable areal capacities between 4.2 and 4.8 mAh cm–2 in 50 cycles without obvious decay at 0.2 C. The commercial feasibility of this work is further manifested by its zero added weight, low material cost, and ease of manufacturing and scale-up. The efficacy and simplicity of this work symbolize an example of lab-scale battery research aiming at improved technology and manufacturing readiness level.

Original languageEnglish
Article number2107109
JournalSmall
Volume18
Issue number17
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 27 Apr 2022

Keywords

  • amphoteric polymer binder
  • intermolecular interactions
  • lean electrolytes
  • lithium-sulfur batteries
  • sulfur loading

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Chemistry
  • Engineering (miscellaneous)
  • Biotechnology
  • General Materials Science
  • Biomaterials

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