A 20 °C operating high capacity solid-state Li-S battery with an engineered carbon support cathode structure. (June 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zhou, Chengtian; Bag, Sourav; He, Tianhao; Lv, Bowen; Thangadurai, Venkataraman
• Is Part Of: Applied materials today. Volume 19(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-06
• Subjects: Solid state batteries -- Li-garnet -- Hybrid materials -- Li-S cell -- Cathode structure; Materials science -- Periodicals; Materials -- Research -- Periodicals; 620.1105
• DOI: 10.1016/j.apmt.2020.100585
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2352-9407

Abstract

Graphical abstract: Cycling performance of S@KB cathodes with sulfur loadings of 0.5, 1.1 and 1.6 mg cm −2 . Highlights: Sulfur-Ketjen black (S@KB) composite cathode for Li-S battery. A solid-state lithium-sulfur battery operating at 20 °C. Composite polymer-Li-stuffed ceramic electrolyte for Li-S battery. Abstract: A solid-state lithium-sulfur battery (SSLSB) exhibits much higher theoretical energy density compared with current intercalation electrode-based lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) and possesses excellent safety originated from the less flammable electrolyte. However, a small sulfur loading and limited utilization of active material hamper its practical application. Besides, an elevated temperature is usually required for the operation of SSLSBs. In the present work, a homogeneous nanostructured sulfur-Ketjen black (S@KB) composite cathode was synthesized through an energy-efficient deposition method. A stable and highly ionic conductive composite polymer-ceramic electrolyte (CPE) was employed as the solid-state electrolyte. The SSLSB delivered a pronounced specific capacity of 1108 mA h g −1 and areal capacity of 1.77 mA h cm −2, and demonstrated stable cycling for 50 cycles. Also, benefiting from fast reaction kinetics, the SSLSB was able to operate at 20 °C and established an excellent rate capability. These results emphasize the morphology control of the cathode plays a critical role in the electrochemical performance of SSLSBs.