Issue

Vol. 13 (2021)

Understanding Sulfur Redox Mechanisms in Different Electrolytes for Room-Temperature Na–S Batteries

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-021-00648-w
Hanwen Liu
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia
Wei‑Hong Lai
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia
Qiuran Yang
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia
Yaojie Lei
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia
Can Wu
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia
Nana Wang
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia
Yun‑Xiao Wang
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia
Shu‑Lei Chou
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia
Hua Kun Liu
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia
Shi Xue Dou
Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials, Australian Institute of Innovative Materials, University of Wollongong, Innovation Campus, Squires Way, North Wollongong, NSW 2500, Australia

Corresponding Author: Yun‑Xiao Wang

yunxiao@uow.edu.au

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 13 (2021), Article Number: 121

Abstract

This work reports influence of two different electrolytes, carbonate ester and ether electrolytes, on the sulfur redox reactions in room-temperature Na–S batteries. Two sulfur cathodes with different S loading ratio and status are investigated. A sulfur-rich composite with most sulfur dispersed on the surface of a carbon host can realize a high loading ratio (72% S). In contrast, a confined sulfur sample can encapsulate S into the pores of the carbon host with a low loading ratio (44% S). In carbonate ester electrolyte, only the sulfur trapped in porous structures is active via ‘solid–solid’ behavior during cycling. The S cathode with high surface sulfur shows poor reversible capacity because of the severe side reactions between the surface polysulfides and the carbonate ester solvents. To improve the capacity of the sulfur-rich cathode, ether electrolyte with NaNO3 additive is explored to realize a ‘solid–liquid’ sulfur redox process and confine the shuttle effect of the dissolved polysulfides. As a result, the sulfur-rich cathode achieved high reversible capacity (483 mAh g−1), corresponding to a specific energy of 362 Wh kg−1 after 200 cycles, shedding light on the use of ether electrolyte for high-loading sulfur cathode.


Highlights:


1 A ‘solid–liquid’ conversion for increasing the sulfur content from ~ 50 to 72% for RT Na–S batteries is developed.
2 The redox mechanisms of two types of sulfur: sulfur on the surface of a cathode host (155S) and sulfur in the pores of the host (300S) in ether and carbonate ester electrolytes are studied.
3 The function of NaNO3 additive on modifying Na anode and confining the shuttle effect of dissolving polysulfides during ‘solid–liquid’ conversion is visualized.

Keywords

Room-temperature sodium–sulfur batteries Carbonate ester electrolyte Ether electrolyte Sulfur cathode Sulfur redox reactions
Liu, Hanwen, Wei‑Hong Lai, Qiuran Yang, Yaojie Lei, Can Wu, Nana Wang, Yun‑Xiao Wang, Shu‑Lei Chou, Hua Kun Liu, and Shi Xue Dou. 2021. “Understanding Sulfur Redox Mechanisms in Different Electrolytes for Room-Temperature Na–S Batteries”. Nano-Micro Letters 13 (May):121. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-021-00648-w.
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