Metal-Based Electrocatalysts for High-Performance Lithium-Sulfur Batteries: A Review

The lithium-sulfur (Li-S) redox battery system is considered to be the most promising next-generation energy storage technology due to its high theoretical specific capacity (1673 mAh g−1), high energy density (2600 Wh kg−1), low cost, and the environmentally friendly nature of sulfur. Though this s...

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Published inCatalysts Vol. 10; no. 10; p. 1137
Main Authors Mahankali, Kiran, Nagarajan, Sudhan, Thangavel, Naresh Kumar, Rajendran, Sathish, Yeddala, Munaiah, Arava, Leela Mohana Reddy
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Basel MDPI AG 01.10.2020
Subjects
Adsorption
Carbon
Catalysts
Chemical reactions
Conversion
Electric vehicles
electrocatalysis
Electrocatalysts
Electrolytes
Energy storage
Flux density
Kinetics
Lithium
Lithium sulfur batteries
lithium-sulfur
Low conductivity
metal carbides
metal oxides
metal sulfides
metals
Portable equipment
Rechargeable batteries
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Summary:The lithium-sulfur (Li-S) redox battery system is considered to be the most promising next-generation energy storage technology due to its high theoretical specific capacity (1673 mAh g−1), high energy density (2600 Wh kg−1), low cost, and the environmentally friendly nature of sulfur. Though this system is deemed to be the next-generation energy storage device for portable electronics and electric vehicles, its poor cycle life, low coulombic efficiency and low rate capability limit it from practical applications. These performance barriers were linked to several issues like polysulfide (LiPS) shuttle, inherent low conductivity of charge/discharge end products, and poor redox kinetics. Here, we review the recent developments made to alleviate these problems through an electrocatalysis approach, which is considered to be an effective strategy not only to trap the LiPS but also to accelerate their conversion reactions kinetics. Herein, the influence of different chemical interactions between the LiPS and the catalyst surfaces and their effect on the conversion of liquid LiPS to solid end products are reviewed. Finally, we also discussed the challenges and perspectives for designing cathode architectures to enable high sulfur loading along with the capability to rapidly convert the LiPS.
ISSN:2073-4344
2073-4344
DOI:10.3390/catal10101137