Recent strategies for improving the performances of rechargeable lithium batteries with sulfur- and oxygen-based conversion cathodes

Abstract

The energy density of lithium-ion batteries based on intercalated electrode materials has reached its upper limit, which makes it challenging to meet the growing demand for high-energy storage systems. Electrode materials based on conversion reactions such as sulfur, organosulfides, and oxygen involving breakage and reformation of chemical bonds can provide higher specific capacity and energy density. In addition, they usually consist of abundant elements, making them renewable. Although they have the aforementioned benefits, they face numerous challenges for practical applications. For example, the cycled products of sulfur and molecular organosulfides could be soluble in a liquid electrolyte, resulting in the shuttle effect and significant capacity loss. The discharged product of oxygen is Li₂O₂, which could result in high charge overpotential and decomposition of the electrolyte. In this review, we present an overview of the current strategies for improving the performances of lithium-sulfur, lithium-organosulfide, and lithium-oxygen batteries. First, we summarize the efforts to overcome the issues facing sulfur and organosulfide cathodes, as well as the strategies to increase the capacity of organosulfides. Then, we introduce the latest research progress on catalysts in lithium-oxygen batteries. Finally, we summarize and provide outlooks for the conversion of electrode materials.

Keywords

Electrode material / conversion reaction / sulfur / organosulfide / oxygen / lithium battery

References

[1] Deng D.Li-ion batteries: basics, progress, and challenges.Energy Sci Eng2015;3:385-418

[2] Pender JP,Youn DH.Electrode degradation in lithium-ion batteries.ACS Nano2020;14:1243-95

[3] Mukhopadhyay A.Deformation and stress in electrode materials for Li-ion batteries.Prog Mater Sci2014;63:58-116

[4] Manthiram A.A reflection on lithium-ion battery cathode chemistry.Nat Commun2020;11:1550 PMCID:PMC7096394

[5] Yin YX,Guo YG.Lithium-sulfur batteries: electrochemistry, materials, and prospects.Angew Chem Int Ed2013;52:13186-200

[6] Zhao M,Zhang XQ,Zhang Q.A perspective toward practical lithium-sulfur batteries.ACS Cent Sci2020;6:1095-104 PMCID:PMC7379100

[7] Guo W,Chen Q.Advances of organosulfur materials for rechargeable metal batteries.Adv Sci2022;9:e2103989 PMCID:PMC8811802

[8] Feng N,Zhou H.Critical challenges in rechargeable aprotic Li-O₂ batteries.Adv Energy Mater2016;6:1502303

[9] Shu C,Long J,Dou SX.Understanding the reaction chemistry during charging in aprotic lithium-oxygen batteries: existing problems and solutions.Adv Mater2019;31:e1804587

[10] Chen Y,Tian H,Zhang Q.Advances in lithium-sulfur batteries: from academic research to commercial viability.Adv Mater2021;33:e2003666

[11] Hong X,Fu J.A wheat flour derived hierarchical porous carbon/graphitic carbon nitride composite for high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries.Carbon2020;170:119-26

[12] Li Y,Chen Y,Gao S.Mesoporous N-rich carbon with single-Ni atoms as a multifunctional sulfur host for Li-S batteries.Angew Chem Int Ed2022;61:e202212680

[13] Lian J,Fu Y.Isomeric organodithiol additives for improving interfacial chemistry in rechargeable Li-S batteries.J Am Chem Soc2021;143:11063-71

[14] Guo W,Si Y,Fu Y.Artificial dual solid-electrolyte interfaces based on in situ organothiol transformation in lithium sulfur battery.Nat Commun2021;12:3031 PMCID:PMC8163853

[15] He J,Manthiram A.Three-dimensional Fe₃O₄/N-graphene sponge as an efficient organosulfide host for high-performance lithium-organosulfur batteries.Energy Stor Mater2019;23:88-94

[16] Sang P,Guo W.Hyperbranched organosulfur polymer cathode materials for Li-S battery.Chem Eng J2021;415:129043

[17] Yang Z,Hu Z.Room-temperature all-solid-state lithium-organic batteries based on sulfide electrolytes and organodisulfide cathodes.Adv Energy Mater2021;11:2102962

[18] Ma S,Li Z.Tuning the nucleation and decomposition of Li₂O₂ by fluorine-doped carbon vesicles towards high performance Li-O₂ batteries.J Energy Chem2022;70:614-22

[19] Zhang W,Chen Z.The controllable construction of nanochannel in two-dimensional lamellar film for efficient oxygen reduction reaction and lithium-oxygen batteries.Chem Eng J2022;430:132489

[20] Sun Z,Tian M.Synergized multimetal oxides with amorphous/crystalline heterostructure as efficient electrocatalysts for lithium-oxygen batteries.Adv Energy Mater2021;11:2100110

[21] Ji X,Lee KT.Agitation induced loading of sulfur into carbon CMK-3 nanotubes: efficient scavenging of noble metals from aqueous solution.Chem Commun2010;46:1658-60

[22] Chung SH.Current status and future prospects of metal-sulfur batteries.Adv Mater2019;31:e1901125

[23] Seh ZW,Zhang Q.Designing high-energy lithium-sulfur batteries.Chem Soc Rev2016;45:5605-34

[24] Zhang L,Niu Z.Advanced nanostructured carbon-based materials for rechargeable lithium-sulfur batteries.Carbon2019;141:400-16

[25] Hu Q,Wang B.Constructing coral-like hierarchical porous carbon architectures with tailored pore size distribution as sulfur hosts for durable Li-S batteries.Electrochim Acta2021;377:138063

[26] Zhang Y,Wang J.“Sauna” activation toward intrinsic lattice deficiency in carbon nanotube microspheres for high-energy and long-lasting lithium-sulfur batteries.Adv Energy Mater2021;11:2100497

[27] Shi K,Li J,Liao J.Carbon-based cathode host derived from crosslinked porous polyimides for lithium-sulfur batteries and their electrochemical properties.Int J Hydrog Energy2022;47:21662-72

[28] Liu Y,Zhang B.Sustainable synthesis of N-doped hollow porous carbon spheres via a spray-drying method for lithium-sulfur storage with ultralong cycle life.Batteries Supercaps2020;3:1201-8

[29] Yang Z,Zhao Q.Multichalcogen-integrated cathodes for novel lithium-chalcogenide batteries in ether and ester electrolytes.ACS Appl Mater Interfaces2022;14:32112-23

[30] Zhou L,Eichel R.Host materials anchoring polysulfides in Li-S batteries reviewed.Adv Energy Mater2021;11:2001304

[31] Lin Y,Xiong Z,Liu Q.Carbon-based conductive frameworks and metal catalytic sites derived from cross-linked porous porphyrin-based polyimides for enhanced conversion of lithium polysulfides in Li-S batteries.ACS Appl Energy Mater2021;4:14497-507

[32] Su L,Chen Y.Cobalt-embedded hierarchically-porous hollow carbon microspheres as multifunctional confined reactors for high-loading Li-S batteries.Nano Energy2021;85:105981

[33] Zhang B,Wang B.Petroleum coke derived porous carbon/NiCoP with efficient reviving catalytic and adsorptive activity as sulfur host for high performance lithium - sulfur batteries.Nano Res2022;15:4058-67

[34] Li W,Xiao L.Enhancing polysulfide confinement and conversion in meso-/microporous core-shelled MoC/NC microspheres for lithium-sulfur batteries.J Mater Chem A2021;9:26051-60

[35] Kang X,Guan H,Zhang J.Manipulating the electrocatalytic activity of sulfur cathode via distinct cobalt sulfides as sulfur host materials in lithium-sulfur batteries.J Colloid Interface Sci2022;622:515-25

[36] Wang YP,Cao XR,Zhu ZZ.Monolayer MSi₂P₄ (M = V, Nb, and Ta) as highly efficient sulfur host materials for lithium-sulfur batteries.ACS Appl Mater Interfaces2022;14:27833-41

[37] Wei Z,Sokolowski J,Wu G.Mechanistic understanding of the role separators playing in advanced lithium-sulfur batteries.InfoMat2020;2:483-508

[38] Wu N,Liao C.A flame retardant separator modified by MOFs-derived hybrid for safe and efficient Li-S batteries.J Energy Chem2022;64:372-84

[39] Wang M,Chao Z.Celgard-supported LiX zeolite membrane as ion-permselective separator in lithium sulfur battery.J Membr Sci2020;611:118386

[40] Wang Y,Wang J,Yu J.Enhanced chemisorption and catalytic conversion of polysulfides via CoFe@NC nanocubes modified separator for superior Li-S batteries.Chem Eng J2022;433:133792

[41] Yu X,Koo JH.Tailoring the pore size of a polypropylene separator with a polymer having intrinsic nanoporosity for suppressing the polysulfide shuttle in lithium-sulfur batteries.Adv Energy Mater2019;10:1902872

[42] Peng J,Wang Y,Jiang J.Thermotolerant and Li₂Sn-trapped/converted separators enabled by NiFe₂O₄ quantum dots/g-C₃N₄ nanofiber interlayers: toward more practical Li-S batteries.Mater Chem Front2022;6:2034-41

[43] Tan L,Wang Z,Wang J.Lightweight reduced graphene Oxide@MoS₂ interlayer as polysulfide barrier for high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries.ACS Appl Mater Interfaces2018;10:3707-13

[44] Hu Q,Yang C.Promoting reversible redox kinetics by separator architectures based on CoS₂/HPGC interlayer as efficient polysulfide-trapping shield for Li-S batteries.Small2020;16:e2002046

[45] Kim S,Choi S,Lee Y.Strongly anchoring polysulfides by hierarchical Fe₃O₄/C₃N₄ nanostructures for advanced lithium-sulfur batteries.Nanomicro Lett2020;12:139 PMCID:PMC7770789

[46] Lee BJ,Yu JH.Development of high-energy non-aqueous lithium-sulfur batteries via redox-active interlayer strategy.Nat Commun2022;13:4629 PMCID:PMC9360432

[47] Cao R,Lv D,Zhang J.Anodes for rechargeable lithium-sulfur batteries.Adv Energy Mater2015;5:1402273

[48] Sun J,Fu Y.Benzoselenol as an organic electrolyte additive in Li-S battery.Nano Res2023;16:3814-22

[49] Wang D,Li F,Guo W.Nitrogen-rich azoles as trifunctional electrolyte additives for high-performance lithium-sulfur battery.J Energy Chem2022;71:572-9

[50] Jiang C,Jia Q.In situ synthesis of organopolysulfides enabling spatial and kinetic co-mediation of sulfur chemistry.ACS Nano2022;16:9163-71

[51] Zhao M,Li XY,Huang JQ.An organodiselenide comediator to facilitate sulfur redox kinetics in lithium-sulfur batteries.Adv Mater2021;33:e2007298

[52] Wang DY,Fu Y.Organosulfides: an emerging class of cathode materials for rechargeable lithium batteries.ACC Chem Res2019;52:2290-300

[53] Visco SJ.Ionic conductivity of organosulfur melts for advanced storage electrodes.J Electrochem Soc1988;135:2905-9

[54] Chen Q,Wang W,Guo W.Thiuram monosulfide with ultrahigh redox activity triggered by electrochemical oxidation.J Am Chem Soc2022;144:18918-26

[55] Pan Q,Si Y,Fu Y.A fluorinated macrocyclic organodisulfide cathode for lithium organic batteries.Chem Commun2022;58:5602-5

[56] Fan Q,Si Y,Wang B.Inorganic mediator toward organosulfide active material: anchoring and electrocatalysis.Adv Funct Mater2021;31:2001493

[57] Lv X,Song J.Dynamic 1T-2H mixed-phase MoS₂ enables high-performance Li-organosulfide battery.Small2022;18:e2105071

[58] Wang Z,Guo W.Anion intercalation of VS₄ triggers atomic sulfur transfer to organic disulfide in rechargeable lithium battery.Adv Funct Mater2021;31:2009875

[59] Sang P,Fu Y.Polyphenyl polysulfide: a new polymer cathode material for Li-S batteries.Chem Commun2019;55:4857-60

[60] Chung WJ,Kim ET.The use of elemental sulfur as an alternative feedstock for polymeric materials.Nat Chem2013;5:518-24

[61] Bhargav A,Fu Y.Rationally designed high-sulfur-content polymeric cathode material for lithium-sulfur batteries.ACS Appl Mater Interfaces2019;11:6136-42

[62] Zhou J,Sun Y,Qian T.Insight into the reaction mechanism of sulfur chains adjustable polymer cathode for high-loading lithium-organosulfur batteries.J Energy Chem2021;56:238-44

[63] Zhang X,Chen K.Structure-related electrochemical behavior of sulfur-rich polymer cathode with solid-solid conversion in lithium-sulfur batteries.Energy Stor Mater2022;45:1144-52

[64] Kim JG,Mukherjee S.A review of lithium and non-lithium based solid state batteries.J Power Sources2015;282:299-322

[65] Manthiram A,Wang S.Lithium battery chemistries enabled by solid-state electrolytes.Nat Rev Mater2017;2:16103

[66] Wang B,Si Y,Fu Y.Garnet solid-state electrolyte with benzenedithiolate catholyte for rechargeable lithium batteries.Chem Commun2022;58:3657-60

[67] Ji W,Zheng D,Lambert TH.Practically accessible all-solid-state batteries enabled by organosulfide cathodes and sulfide electrolytes.Adv Funct Mater2022;32:2202919

[68] Song J,Guo W,Fu Y.Organosulfide-based deep eutectic electrolyte for lithium batteries.Angew Chem Int Ed2021;60:9881-5

[69] Wang B,Fu Y.High-performance garnet solid-state battery enabled by improved interfaces.J Power Sources2022;542:231798

[70] Dou Y,Wei Y,Zhou Z.Redox mediators for high-performance lithium-oxygen batteries.Natl Sci Rev2022;9:nwac040 PMCID:PMC9084180

[71] Shen X,Cheng X,Huang J.Beyond lithium ion batteries: higher energy density battery systems based on lithium metal anodes.Energy Stor Mater2018;12:161-75

[72] Lu Y,Kwabi DG.Lithium-oxygen batteries: bridging mechanistic understanding and battery performance.Energy Environ Sci2013;6:750-68

[73] Zhang H,Judez X,Rodriguez-Martínez LM.Electrolyte additives for lithium metal anodes and rechargeable lithium metal batteries: progress and perspectives.Angew Chem Int Ed2018;57:15002-27

[74] Chen K,Wang J,Zhang X.Overcharge to remove cathode passivation layer for reviving failed Li-O₂ batteries.CCS Chem2023;5:641-53

[75] Huang H,Zhang G.Surface phosphatization for a sawdust-derived carbon catalyst as kinetics promoter and corrosion preventer in lithium-oxygen batteries.Adv Funct Mater2022;32:2111546

[76] Qian Z,Ma Y.Se-doped carbon as highly stable cathode material for high energy nonaqueous Li-O₂ batteries.Chem Eng Sci2020;214:115413

[77] Lv Q,Ni Y,Li F.Spin-state manipulation of two-dimensional metal-organic framework with enhanced metal-oxygen covalency for lithium-oxygen batteries.Angew Chem Int Ed2022;61:e202114293

[78] Lv Q,Ni Y.Atomic ruthenium-riveted metal-organic framework with tunable d-band modulates oxygen redox for lithium-oxygen batteries.J Am Chem Soc2022;144:23239-46

[79] Li N,Zhong M.Functionalizing MOF with redox-active tetrazine moiety for improving the performance as cathode of Li-O₂ batteries.CCS Chem2021;3:1297-305

[80] Jung WB,Jang JS.Polyelemental nanoparticles as catalysts for a Li-O₂ battery.ACS Nano2021;15:4235-44

[81] Li D,Robertson SJ.Heterogeneous bimetallic organic coordination polymer-derived Co/Fe@NC bifunctional catalysts for rechargeable Li-O₂ batteries.ACS Appl Mater Interfaces2022;14:5459-67

[82] Ren L,Du D.Optimized orbital occupancy of transition metal in spinel Ni-Co oxides with heteroatom doping for Aprotic Li-O₂ battery.Chem Eng J2022;430:132977

[83] Hu C,Dai Q.Carbon-based metal-free electrocatalysts: from oxygen reduction to multifunctional electrocatalysis.Chem Soc Rev2021;50:11785-843

[84] Zheng X,Cao X.N-, P-, and S-doped graphene-like carbon catalysts derived from onium salts with enhanced oxygen chemisorption for Zn-air battery cathodes.Appl Catal B Environ2019;241:442-51

[85] Yi X,Dou R,Zhou W.Understanding the catalytic activity of the preferred nitrogen configuration on the carbon nanotube surface and its implications for Li-O₂ batteries.J Phys Chem C2021;125:22570-80

[86] Zhou J,Hou L.Ultrahigh volumetric capacitance and cyclic stability of fluorine and nitrogen co-doped carbon microspheres.Nat Commun2015;6:8503 PMCID:PMC4598840

[87] Wang T,Wang X,Shao Q.Recent advances in fluorine-doped/fluorinated carbon-based materials for supercapacitors.Energy Stor Mater2020;30:367-84

[88] Li Z,Feng M.Modulating metal-organic frameworks as advanced oxygen electrocatalysts.Adv Energy Mater2021;11:2003291

[89] Shen G,Pan L.Regulating the spin state of Fe^III by atomically anchoring on ultrathin titanium dioxide for efficient oxygen evolution electrocatalysis.Angew Chem Int Ed2020;132:2333-7

[90] Balaish M,Kim I.A critical review on functionalization of air-cathodes for nonaqueous Li-O₂ batteries.Adv Funct Mater2020;30:1808303