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PEO-coated sulfur-carbon composite for high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries

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Abstract

Poly(ethylene oxide)-coated sulfur/carbon (S/C/PEO) composite with a high sulfur loading is prepared to improve the performance of lithium-sulfur batteries. By magnetic string, 3.7 wt% PEO is coated onto the surface of ball-milling obtained S/C composite, leading to synthesis of S/C/PEO composite containing 78 wt% S. It is confirmed from a series of measurements that PEO covers the S/C composite uniformly, and PEO coating is quite effective in stabilizing the electrochemical performance. When employed as cathode for lithium-sulfur batteries, S/C/PEO delivers an initial discharge capacity of 989.6 mAh g−1 and remains 648.3 mAh g−1 after 110 cycles at a discharge/charge rate of 1 C (based on sulfur weight). Meanwhile, the coulomb efficiency of S/C/PEO composite reaches to ~98 % during the latter 105 cycles. The improved electrochemical performance can be attributed to the formation of PEO coating layer which can keep a tight contact between carbon and sulfur and lead to improved conductivity. Moreover, the PEO coating can act as a flexible cushion to accommodate volume changes of sulfur cathode as well as a barrier to trap soluble polysulfide intermediates during the charge-discharge processes.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (2009CB220105), the international cooperation program with Germany (2012DFG61480), and the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (2013AA050901).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Weijin Road 92#, Tianjin, 300072, China

    LinYan Li, Xiaoyan Liu, Kunlei Zhu, Jianhua Tian & Zhongqiang Shan

  2. National Key Laboratory of Science and Technology on Power Sources, Tianjin, 300381, China

    Xuesheng Liu & Kai Yang

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  1. LinYan Li
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  2. Xiaoyan Liu
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  3. Kunlei Zhu
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  4. Jianhua Tian
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  7. Zhongqiang Shan
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Correspondence to Zhongqiang Shan.

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Li, L., Liu, X., Zhu, K. et al. PEO-coated sulfur-carbon composite for high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries. J Solid State Electrochem 19, 3373–3379 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10008-015-2961-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10008-015-2961-1

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