Active Anchoring Polysulfides of ZnS‐Decorated Porous Carbon Aerogel for a High‐Performance Lithium‐Sulfur Battery. Issue 9 (9th May 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Hua, Yang; Li, Xueliang; Zhang, Xingchi; Zhang, Luyao; Shu, Yizhen; Sheng, Huijuan; Fang, Huagao; Wei, Haibing; Ding, Yunsheng
• Is Part Of: ChemElectroChem. Volume 6:Issue 9(2019)
• Page Start: 2570
• Page End: 2577
• Publication Date: 2019-05-09
• Subjects: carbon aerogel -- zinc sulfide -- immobilization -- first principle -- lithium−sulfur batteries; Electrochemistry -- Periodicals; 541.37
• DOI: 10.1002/celc.201900556
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2196-0216

Abstract

Abstract: A carbon aerogel composite modified with ZnS (ZnS‐CA) was successfully prepared through a simple in situ synthesis and used as a cathode for lithium‐sulfur batteries. The nanopore ZnS‐CA composites with a high specific surface area and rich mesoporous structure exhibit stronger adsorption and immobilization ability for polysulfides. The ZnS‐CA/S cathode materials offer excellent electrochemical performances with lasting cycling stability and high specific capacity. In particular, the 6ZnS‐CA/S sample achieves an initial capacity of 1352 mAh g −1 at 0.2 C and maintains a high capacity of 1119 mAh g −1 after 100 cycles. Furthermore, after 300 long cycles, it still maintains a high capacity of 730 mAh g −1 at 1 C. These excellent performance features are attributed to the strong affinity of ZnS for Li2 S n species, thus polysulfide shuttling can be effectively inhibited from the cathode source. Furthermore, the strong adsorption energy between ZnS and polysulfides was validated by using first‐principles theory calculations, which reveals the anchoring and catalytic mechanism. Abstract : Anchored down : Ultrafine ZnS is successfully introduced into carbon aerogel (CA) to form a cathode for lithium–sulfur batteries. The nanoporous ZnS‐CA composites present excellent electrochemical performances, owing to the ZnS nanoparticles having a strong affinity for Li2 S n species. Furthermore, the strong affinity was validated by first‐principles theory calculations; the results clearly reveal the anchoring and catalytic mechanism.