Developing A “Polysulfide‐Phobic” Strategy to Restrain Shuttle Effect in Lithium–Sulfur Batteries

Inspired by hydrophobic interface, a novel design of “polysulfide‐phobic” interface was proposed and developed to restrain shuttle effect in lithium–sulfur batteries. Two‐dimensional VOPO₄ sheets with adequate active sites were employed to immobilize the polysulfides through the formation of a V?S bond. Moreover, owing to the intrinsic Coulomb repulsion between polysulfide anions, the surface anchored with polysulfides can be further evolved into a “polysulfide‐phobic” interface, which was demonstrated by the advanced time/space‐resolved operando Raman evidences. In particular, by introducing the “polysulfide‐phobic” surface design into separator fabrication, the lithium–sulfur battery performed a superior long‐term cycling stability. This work expands a novel strategy to build a “polysulfide‐phobic” surface by “self‐defense” mechanism for suppressing polysulfides shuttle, which provides new insights and opportunities to develop advanced lithium–sulfur batteries.     

Theoretical investigations on the conversions of cyclic polysulfides to acyclic polysulfide diradicals and subsequent reactions of biological interest

Sulfur is one of the most necessary biogenic elements in nature that must be assimilated by all organisms; it is an essential macronutrient for living organisms and has multiple roles in plant development. The oxidation of elemental sulfur is a complex process involving the contact of cells with sulfur particles, the oxidation of sulfur to sulfite, and the oxidation of sulfite to sulfate. To provide hypothesis concerning the most probable processes in the early states, we determined, by quantum-chemical calculations, the energies of some allotropic forms containing up to 32–40 sulfur atoms and energetics of their reactions with triplet dioxygen. The most probable reactions occurred with methylpolysulfane anions with an electron transfer to give the superoxide anion radical (and thiyls radicals) and especially the formation of peroxydic polysulfane anions. Calculations confirmed that the triplet diradical is more stable than the singlet one for acyclic polysulfide chains.     

Ferrocene‐Promoted Long‐Cycle Lithium–Sulfur Batteries

Confining lithium polysulfide intermediates is one of the most effective ways to alleviate the capacity fade of sulfur‐cathode materials in lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries. To develop long‐cycle Li–S batteries, there is an urgent need for material structures with effective polysulfide binding capability and well‐defined surface sites; thereby improving cycling stability and allowing study of molecular‐level interactions. This challenge was addressed by introducing an organometallic molecular compound, ferrocene, as a new polysulfide‐confining agent. With ferrocene molecules covalently anchored on graphene oxide, sulfur electrode materials with capacity decay as low as 0.014 % per cycle were realized, among the best of cycling stabilities reported to date. With combined spectroscopic studies and theoretical calculations, it was determined that effective polysulfide binding originates from favorable cation–π interactions between Li⁺ of lithium polysulfides and the negatively charged cyclopentadienyl ligands of ferrocene.     

Synthesis,Crystal Structure,Optical, Magnetic,and Thermal Properties of the New Heteroleptic Chromium Complex [Ph4P][Cr(en)(S5)2]

The new heteroleptic chromium complex [Ph₄P][Cr(en)(S₅)₂] has been synthesised under mild solvothermal conditions by the reaction of chromium trichloride, sulfur, and tetraphenylphosphoniumbromide in a solution of ethylendiamine ( en ) in water. The crystal structure consists of isolated tetraphenylphosphonium cations and [Cr(en)(S₅)₂]^– anions. The Cr³⁺ cations are in an octahedral coordination of two bidentate S₅^2– polysulfide anions and one bidentate en ligand. The N atoms of the en ligand and the terminal S atoms of the S₅^2– anions bonded to the Cr³⁺ ions are in a cis-position. The six-membered CrS₅ rings are in a chair conformation. The three dimensional arrangement of the cations and anions is achieved via intermolecular hydrogen bonds. Investigations with differential thermal analysis (DTA) combined with thermogravimetry (TG) show a stepwise decomposition. In the first step the en ligand is removed completely followed by the emission of a part of the tetraphenylphosphonium cations and the sulfur atoms in the second step. The temperature dependence of the magnetic susceptibility exhibits a Curie-Weiss behaviour with an effective magnetic moment typical for a Cr³⁺ (d³) ion and a value for the Weiss constant of 1.3(2) K. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was also performed to characterise the optical properties.     

Cationic covalent organic framework via cycloaddition reactions as sulfur-loaded matrix for lithium-sulfur batteries

The postsynthetic modification provided effective approaches for the functionalization of imine covalent organic frameworks (COFs). To address the rapid decline of sulfur cathodes caused by the shuttle effect of soluble lithium polysulfide, cationic COFs (COF-PA-AI) used as sulfur-loaded matrix materials for lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries was designed and prepared by cycloaddition. Benefiting from the ordered channels and the strong interaction between quaternary ammonium cations and polysulfide anions, COF-PA-AI/S displayed faster electrochemical kinetics, greater tolerance to high current shocks, and better rate performance as the cathode. Besides, the discharge capacity of COF-PA-AI/S also remained at 665.3 mA h/g after 200 cycles at 0.5 °C, which was higher than that of COF-Ph/S. This work not only demonstrated the possibility of a postfunctionalization method based on the intermediate COF-PA but also expanded the scope of application of the COFs and provided a new idea for the application of COF materials to the cathodes of Li-S batteries.     

In-situ polymerized cross-linked binder for cathode in lithium-sulfur batteries

Volume expansion and polysulfide shuttle effect are the main barriers for the commercialization of lithium-sulfur(Li-S) battery.In this work,we in-situ polymerized a cross-linked binder in sulfur cathode to solve the aforementioned problems using a facile method under mild conditions.Polycarbonate diol(PCDL),triethanolamine(TEA) and hexamethylene diisocyanate(HDI) were chosen as precursors to prepare the cross-linked binder.The in-situ polymerized binder(PTH) builds a strong network in sulfur cathode,which could restrain the volume expansion of sulfu r.Moreover,by adopting functional groups of oxygen atoms and nitrogen atoms,the binder could effectively facilitate transportation of Li-ion and adsorb polysulfide chemically.The Li-S battery with bare sulfur and carbon/sulfur composite cathodes and cross-linked PTH binder displays much better electrochemical performance than that of the battery with PVDF.The PTH-bare S cathode with a mass loading of 5.97 mg/cm^2 could deliver a capacity of 733.3 mAh/g at 0.2 C,and remained 585.5 mAh/g after 100 cycles.This in-situ polymerized binder is proved to be quite effective on restraining the volume expansion and suppressing polysulfide shuttle effect,then improving the electrochemical performance of Li-S battery.     

Equilibrium of the reaction between dissolved sodium sulfide and biologically produced sulfur

The equilibrium of the heterogeneous reaction between dissolved sodium sulfide and biologically produced sulfur particles has been studied. Biologically produced sulfur was obtained from a bioreactor of a hydrogen sulfide removal process in which the dominating organism is Thiobacillus sp. W5. Detailed knowledge of this reaction is essential to understand its effect on the process. The results were compared with the equilibrium of the reaction of sulfide with ‘inorganic’ elemental sulfur. The equilibrium between dissolved sodium sulfide and biologically produced sulfur particles can be described by an equilibrium constant, K_x, which consists of a weighted sum of constants for polysulfide ions of different chain length, rather than a true single equilibrium constant. For biologically produced sulfur pK_x = 9.10 ± 0.08 (21 °C) and 9.17 ± 0.09 (35 °C) with an average polysulfide chain length x = 4.91 ± 0.32 (21 °C) and 4.59 ± 0.31 (35 °C). The pK_x value for biologically produced sulfur is significantly higher than for reaction of dissolved sodium sulfide with inorganic sulfur (pK_x = 8.82; 21 °C). This difference is probably caused by the negatively charged polymeric organic layer, which is present on biologically produced sulfur but absent with “inorganic” sulfur. Specific binding of polysulfide ions to the organic layer results in a higher polysulfide concentration at the reaction site compared to the bulk concentration. This results in an apparent decrease of the measured equilibrium constant, K_x.     

Synthesis and characterization of saturated and unsaturated polysulfide polymers and their thermal degradation processes investigated by flash pyrolysis–gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

The synthesis of polysulfide polymers with unsaturated and saturated units in the backbone and their characterization by Fourier transform infrared, NMR, gel permeation chromatography, thermogravimetric analysis, and differential scanning calorimetry are reported. This is the first report on an analysis of the thermal degradation of an unsaturated polysulfide polymer [poly(2‐butene sulfide)] carried out by pyrolysis–gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py–GC/MS). A unique phenomenon of exothermic degradation has been detected by differential thermal analysis and has been attributed to the energetics of the unsaturated polysulfide linkage during degradation. The thermal degradation products studied by Py–GC/MS indicate that the formation of sulfur‐containing products is more favored than the formation of non‐sulfur‐containing products. Furthermore, a comparative study of the thermal degradation of unsaturated and saturated polysulfide polymers has been conducted with thermogravimetry and Py–GC/MS analyses. These analyses have shown that the mechanisms of degradation of these polymers are different, and the lower number of pyrolysis products indicates a selective cleavage of the polymer during degradation in the saturated polysulfide polymers. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 638–649, 2005     

Chromatography-Free Multicomponent Synthesis of Thioureas Enabled by Aqueous Solution of Elemental Sulfur

The development of a new three-component chromatography-free reaction of isocyanides, amines and elemental sulfur allowed us the straightforward synthesis of thioureas in water. Considering a large pool of organic and inorganic bases, we first optimized the preparation of aqueous polysulfide solution from elemental sulfur. Using polysulfide solution, we were able to omit the otherwise mandatory chromatography, and to isolate the crystalline products directly from the reaction mixture by a simple filtration, retaining the sulfur in the solution phase. A wide range of thioureas synthesized in this way confirmed the reasonable substrate and functional group tolerance of our protocol.     

果胶粘结剂在锂硫电池中的应用研究

锂硫电池由于其超高理论能量密度(2567 Wh·kg^?1),较低的成本,以及环境友好性,被视为下一代储能设备的有力竞争者之一.鉴于粘结剂在稳定硫正极结构和抑制多硫化物穿梭方面可发挥重要作用,发展高性能硫正极粘结剂是改善锂硫电池性能的有效途径之一.本文研究了以果胶作为锂硫电池正极粘结剂的可行性.研究表明,采用果胶作为粘结剂的锂硫电池在电化学循环测试中首次放电比容量可达1210.6 mAh·g^?1,并且在200次循环后仍有837.4 mAh·g^?1的放电比容量,明显优于羧甲基纤维素钠-丁苯橡胶复合粘结剂的电池性能.经研究证实果胶粘结剂性能优良的原因在于其可以有效确保多壁碳纳米管/硫复合正极的结构稳定性并抑制多硫化物的穿梭.     

Halide‐Free Synthesis of Hydrochalcogenide Ionic Liquids of the Type [Cation][HE] (E=S,Se, Te)

We present the synthesis and thorough characterization of ionic liquids and organic salts based on hydrochalcogenide HE^? (E=S, Se, Te) anions. Our approach is based on halide‐, metal‐, and water‐free decarboxylation of methylcarbonate precursors under acidic conditions, resulting from the easily dissociating reagents H₂E. The compounds were characterized by elemental analysis, multinuclear NMR spectroscopy, thermal and single‐crystal XRD analyses. The hydrosulfide salts were investigated with respect to their ability to dissolve elemental sulfur in varying stoichiometry. Thus‐prepared polysulfide ILs were also analyzed by UV/Vis spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry.     

Sulfur‐Limonene Polysulfide: A Material Synthesized Entirely from Industrial By‐Products and Its Use in Removing Toxic Metals from Water and Soil

A polysulfide material was synthesized by the direct reaction of sulfur and d ‐limonene, by‐products of the petroleum and citrus industries, respectively. The resulting material was processed into functional coatings or molded into solid devices for the removal of palladium and mercury salts from water and soil. The binding of mercury(II) to the sulfur‐limonene polysulfide resulted in a color change. These properties motivate application in next‐generation environmental remediation and mercury sensing.     

Sandwich-type functionalized graphene sheet-sulfur nanocomposite for rechargeable lithium batteries

A functionalized graphene sheet-sulfur (FGSS) nanocomposite was synthesized as the cathode material for lithium-sulfur batteries. The structure has a layer of functionalized graphene sheets/stacks (FGS) and a layer of sulfur nanoparticles creating a three-dimensional sandwich-type architecture. This unique FGSS nanoscale layered composite has a high loading (70 wt%) of active material (S), a high tap density of ～0.92 g cm(-3), and a reversible capacity of ～505 mAh g(-1) (～464 mAh cm(-3)) at a current density of 1680 mA g(-1) (1C). When coated with a thin layer of cation exchange Nafion film, the migration of dissolved polysulfide anions from the FGSS nanocomposite was effectively reduced, leading to a good cycling stability of 75% capacity retention over 100 cycles. This sandwich-structured composite conceptually provides a new strategy for designing electrodes in energy storage applications.     

Unique Octupolar 2D-Polymer Frameworks as Mixed Conductors and Metal-Free Catalysts for Dual-Promoted Li and S Electrochemistry: Multi-regulation Role of Ethoxylation Chemistry

Here, we for the first time introduce ethoxylation chemistry to develop a new octupolar cyano-vinylene-linked 2D polymer framework (Cyano-OCF-EO) capable of acting as efficient mixed electron/ion conductors and metal-free sulfur evolution catalysts for dual-promoted Li and S electrochemistry. Our strategy creates a unique interconnected network of strongly-coupled donor 3-(acceptor-core) octupoles in Cyano-OCF-EO, affording enhanced intramolecular charge transfer, substantial active sites and crowded open channels. This enables Cyano-OCF-EO as a new versatile separator modifier, which endows the modified separator with superior catalytic activity for sulfur conversion and rapid Li ion conduction with the high Li⁺ transference number up to 0.94. Thus, the incorporation of Cyano-OCF-EO can concurrently regulate sulfur redox reactions and Li-ion flux in Li−S cells, attaining boosted bidirectional redox kinetics, inhibited polysulfide shuttle and dendrite-free Li anodes. The Cyano-OCF-EO-involved Li−S cell is endowed with excellent overall electrochemical performance especially large areal capacity of 7.5 mAh cm⁻² at high sulfur loading of 8.7 mg cm⁻². Mechanistic studies unveil the dominant multi-promoting effect of the triethoxylation on electron and ion conduction, polysulfide adsorption and catalytic conversion as well as previously-unexplored −CN/C−O dual-site synergistic effect for enhanced polysulfide adsorption and reduced energy barrier toward Li₂S conversion.     

Half-sandwich 1,3-Di-t-butylcyclopentadienyl Rhodium Complexes Containing Sulfido Ligands

Interest in the coordination chemistry of organo-transition metal complexescontaining sulfur ligands is continuing because they are involved in important catalyticprocesses[1 ,2 ] ,particularly hydrodesulfurization and hydrogenation reactions[3] and theyundergo a variety of reaction with metal species[4～ 6] . Although half-sandwichpentamethylcyclopentadienyl complexes with sulfido ligands are well known,only threetypes of half-sandwich compounds with chelating oligosulfido ligands have beendes…     

Pomegranate‐Structured Silica/Sulfur Composite Cathodes for High‐Performance Lithium–Sulfur Batteries

Porous materials have many structural advantages for energy storage and conversion devices such as rechargeable batteries, supercapacitors, and fuel cells. When applied as a host material in lithium‐sulfur batteries, porous silica materials with a pomegranate‐like architecture can not only act as a buffer matrix for accommodating a large volume change of sulfur, but also suppress the polysulfide shuttle effect. The porous silica/sulfur composite cathodes exhibit excellent electrochemical performances including a high specific capacity of 1450 mA h g^?1, a reversible capacity of 82.9 % after 100 cycles at a rate of C/2 (1 C=1672 mA g^?1) and an extended cyclability over 300 cycles at 1 C‐rate. Furthermore, the high polysulfide adsorption property of porous silica has been proven by ex‐situ analyses, showing a relationship between the surface area of silica and polysulfide adsorption ability. In particular, the modified porous silica/sulfur composite cathode, which is treated by a deep‐lithiation process in the first discharge step, exhibits a highly reversible capacity of 94.5 % at 1C‐rate after 300 cycles owing to a formation of lithiated‐silica frames and stable solid‐electrolyte‐interphase layers.     

锂硫电池硫碳复合正极材料研究现状及展望

二次锂硫电池被视为最具有发展潜力的下一代高能量密度二次电池之一. 但由于正极硫的电导率低（5×10^-30 S·cm^-1）,且在放电过程中产生的中间体多硫化物易溶于有机电解液,致使锂硫电池活性物质利用率降低,溶解后的多硫化物还会迁移到负极,被还原成不溶物Li2S2/Li2S而沉积于负极锂,使电极结构遭受破坏,造成电池容量大幅衰减,循环性能差,从而限制了进一步的开发应用. 研究表明,以碳作为导电骨架的硫碳复合正极材料能在不同程度上解决上述问题,从而有效提高了锂硫电池的放电容量和循环性能. 本文综述了近年来国内外报道的各种锂硫电池正极材料的研究进展,结合作者课题组的研究,重点探讨了硫碳复合正极材料,并对其今后的发展趋势进行了展望.     

High performance lithium-sulfur batteries by facilely coating a conductive carbon nanotube or graphene layer

A dual-layer cathode electrode is constituted by facilely coating a conductive carbon nanotube or graphene layer on the pristine sulfur cathode electrode. The conductive layer can effectively improve the conductivity and suppress the polysulfide diffusion, giving rise to an enhanced electrochemical performance for Li-S batteries.     

Copolymerization of liquid sulfur with certain olefinic systems and structure-property studies on the polymeric materials

Liquid sulfur–olefinic reactions at 140°C forming crosslinked polysulfide polymers have been investigated. A systematic approach to the characterization and some structure–property studies on these new polymeric materials has been presented. The olefinic systems of interest are endo-and exo-dicyclopentadiene and an oligomeric alkenyl polysulfide. Equimolar S₈–olefinic system copolymers are amorphous and they show no tendency for sulfur crystallization. A correlation has been drawn between chemical structure and glass transition temperature of the copolymers and terpolymers. Mechanical properties and, in particular, chemical stress relaxation of the crosslinked polysulfide polymers have been investigated.     

Production of sulfur nanoparticles from aqueous solution of potassium polysulfide

Process for production of sulfur nanoparticles with an average size of 20 nm from an aqueous solution of potassium polysulfide by its mixing with various inorganic and organic acids was considered. It was found that, in the course of time, sulfur nanoparticles are coarsened into micrometer agglomerates, which, in turn, disintegrate under the action of an ultrasound.