Engineering zirconium-based metal-organic framework-801 films on carbon cloth as shuttle-inhibiting interlayers for lithium-sulfur batteries

Abstract

Lithium-sulfur batteries have been regarded as the next-generation rechargeable batteries due to their high theoretical energy density and specific capacity. Nevertheless, the shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides has hindered the development of lithium-sulfur batteries. Herein, a novel zirconium-based metal-organic framework-801 film on carbon cloth was developed as a versatile interlayer for lithium-sulfur batteries. This interlayer has a hierarchical porous structure, suitable for the immobilization of lithium polysulfides and accommodating volume expansion on cycling. Moreover, the MOF-801 material is capable of strongly adsorbing lithium polysulfides and promoting their catalytic conversion, which can be enhanced by the abundant active sites provided by the continuous structure of the MOF-801 films. Based on the above advantages, the lithium-sulfur battery, with the proposed interlayer, delivers an initial discharge capacity of 927 mAh·g^–1 at 1 C with an extremely low decay rate of 0.04% over 500 cycles. Additionally, a high area capacity of 4.3 mAh·cm^–2 can be achieved under increased S loading.

Key words： lithium-sulfur batteries; metal-organic framework-801 film; interlayer; shuttle effect

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful for the financial support from the Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province (Grant Nos. B2019202289, B2019202199), ‘Hundred Talents Program’ of Hebei Province (Grant NO. E2019050013), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 21908039).

Electronic Supplementary Material

Supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11705-021-2068-4 and is accessible for authorized users.

References

1 Yang X F, Luo J, Sun X L. Towards high-performance solid-state Li-S batteries: from fundamental understanding to engineering design. Chemical Society Reviews, 2020, 49(7): 2140–2195

2 Tian Y, Li G R, Zhang Y G, Luo D, Wang X, Zhao Y, Liu H, Ji P G, Du X H, Li J D, Chen Z. Low-bandgap Se-deficient antimony selenide as a multifunctional polysulfide barrier toward high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries. Advanced Materials, 2020, 32(4): 1904876

3 Kalaiappan K, Rengapillai S, Marimuthu S, Murugan R, Thiru P. Kombucha SCOBY-based carbon and graphene oxide wrapped sulfur/polyacrylonitrile as a high-capacity cathode in lithium-sulfur batteries. Frontiers of Chemical Science and Engineering, 2020, 14(6): 976–987

4 Pan Y, Zhou Y, Zhao Q, Dou Y, Chou S, Cheng F, Chen J, Liu H K, Jiang L, Dou S X. Introducing ion-transport-regulating nanochannels to lithium-sulfur batteries. Nano Energy, 2017, 33: 205–212

5 Li Z, Zhang J, Guan B, Wang D, Liu L M, Lou X W. A sulfur host based on titanium monoxide@carbon hollow spheres for advanced lithium-sulfur batteries. Nature Communications, 2016, 7(1): 13065

6 Cheng Z, Pan H, Zhong H, Xiao Z, Li X, Wang R. Porous organic polymers for polysulfide trapping in lithium-sulfur batteries. Advanced Functional Materials, 2018, 28(38): 1707597

7 Cui G L, Li G R, Luo D, Zhang Y G, Zhao Y, Wang D R, Wang J Y, Zhang Z, Wang X, Chen Z W. Three-dimensionally ordered macro-microporous metal organic frameworks with strong sulfur immobilization and catalyzation for high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries. Nano Energy, 2020, 72: 104685

8 Sun Z P, Fang L J, Cai J J. A hierarchical composite constructed by ZIF-8 derived carbon core and Mn₃O₄/N-doped carbon shell as efficient polysulfide entrapment host for Li-S batteries. Journal of Alloys and Compounds, 2020, 860: 158461

9 Wang X B, Zhao Y, Wu F C, Liu S M, Zhang Z S, Tan Z Y, Du X H, Li J D. ZIF-7@carbon composites as multifunctional interlayer for rapid and durable Li-S performance. Journal of Energy Chemistry, 2021, 57: 19–27

10 Jeong Y C, Kim J H, Nam S, Park C R, Yang S J. Rational design of nanostructured functional interlayer/separator for advanced Li-S batteries. Advanced Functional Materials, 2018, 28(38): 1707411

11 Bai S, Liu X, Zhu K, Wu S, Zhou H. Metal-organic framework-based separator for lithium-sulfur batteries. Nature Energy, 2016, 1(7): 16094

12 Rana M, Li M, Huang M, Luo B, Gentlec I, Knibbe R. Recent advances in separators to mitigate technical challenges associated with re-chargeable lithium-sulfur batteries. Journal of Materials Chemistry. A, Materials for Energy and Sustainability, 2019, 7(12): 6596–6615

13 Cha E, Patel M D, Park J, Hwang J, Prasad V, Cho K, Choi W. 2D MoS₂ as an efficient protective layer for lithium metal anodes in high-performance Li-S batteries. Nature Nanotechnology, 2018, 13(6): 337–344

14 Fan L, Li M, Li X, Xiao W, Chen Z, Lu J. Interlayer material selection for lithium-sulfur batteries. Joule, 2019, 3(2): 361–386

15 Zheng Y, Zheng S S, Xue H G, Pang H. Metal-organic framework for lithium-sulfur batteries. Journal of Materials Chemistry. A, Materials for Energy and Sustainability, 2019, 7(8): 3469–3491

16 Xiao X, Zou L L, Pang H, Xu Q. Synthesis of micro/nanoscaled metal-organic frameworks and their direct electrochemical applications. Chemical Society Reviews, 2020, 49(1): 301–331

17 Meng J S, Liu X, Niu C J, Pang Q, Li J T, Liu F, Liu Z, Mai L Q. Advances in metal-organic framework coatings: versatile synthesis and broad applications. Chemical Society Reviews, 2020, 49(10): 3142–3186

18 Song J J, Huang Z F, Pan L, Li K, Zhang X W, Wang L, Zou J J. Review on selective hydrogenation of nitroarene by catalytic, photocatalytic and electrocatalytic reactions. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 2018, 227: 386–408

19 Zhang J, Bai H J, Ren Q, Luo H B, Ren X M, Tian Z F, Lu S. Extra water- and acid-stable MOF-801 with high proton conductivity and its composite membrane for proton-exchange membrane. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2018, 10(34): 28656–28663

20 Wang W J, Zhao Y, Zhang Y G, Wang J Y, Cui G L, Li M J, Bakenov Z, Wang X. Defect-rich multi-shelled Fe-doped Co₃O₄ hollow microspheres with multiple spatial confinements to facilitate catalytic conversion of polysulfides for high-performance Li-S batteries. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2020, 12(11): 12763–12773

21 Zhang J H, She Y B. Mechanism of methanol decomposition on the Pd/WC (0001) surface unveiled by first-principles calculations. Frontiers of Chemical Science and Engineering, 2020, 14(6): 1052–1064

22 Sun J J, Li Q Q, Chen G N, Duan J G, Liu G P, Jin W Q. MOF-801 incorporated PEBA mixed-matrix composite membranes for CO₂ capture. Separation and Purification Technology, 2019, 217: 229–239

23 Zhu X H, Yang C X, Yan X P. Metal-organic framework-801 for efficient removal of fluoride from water. Microporous and Mesoporous Materials, 2018, 259: 163–170

24 Choi J, Lin L C, Grossman J C. Role of structural defects in the water adsorption properties of MOF-801. Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 2018, 122(10): 5545–5552

25 Sun L M, Yuan Y S, Wang F, Zhao Y L, Zhan W W, Han X G. Selective wet-chemical etching to create TiO₂@MOF frame heterostructure for efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. Nano Energy, 2020, 74: 104909

26 Jiang Y, Ryu G H, Joo S H, Chen X, Lee S H, Chen X, Huang M, Wu X, Luo D, Huang Y, . Porous two-dimensional monolayer metal-organic framework material and its use for the size-selective separation of nanoparticles. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2017, 9(33): 28107–28116

27 Wang M, Yang H, Shen K, Xu H, Wang W, Yang Z, Zhang L, Chen J, Huang Y, Chen M, . Stable lithium-sulfur battery based on in situ electrocatalytically formed Li₂S on metallic MoS₂-carbon cloth support. Small Methods, 2020, 4(9): 2000353

28 Chen L, Yu H, Li W X, Dirican M, Liu Y, Zhang X W. Interlayer design based on carbon materials for lithium-sulfur batteries: a review. Journal of Materials Chemistry. A, Materials for Energy and Sustainability, 2020, 8(21): 10709–10735

29 Ci H N, Cai J S, Mao H, Shi Z X, Cui G, Wang M L, Jin J, Wei N, Lu C, Zhao W, . Defective VSe₂-graphene heterostructures enabling in situ electrocatalyst evolution for lithium-sulfur batteries. ACS Nano, 2020, 14(9): 11929–11938

30 Li Q, Liu Q, Zhao J, Hua Y, Sun J, Duan J, Jin W. High efficient water/ethanol separation by a mixed matrix membrane incorporating MOF filler with high water adsorption capacity. Journal of Membrane Science, 2017, 544: 68–78

31 Zhang Z, Ren J, Xu J, Wang Z, He W, Wang S, Yang X, Du X, Meng L, Zhao P. Adjust the arrangement of imidazole on the metal-organic framework to obtain hybrid proton exchange membrane with long-term stable high proton conductivity. Journal of Membrane Science, 2020, 607: 118194

32 Ke F, Peng C, Zhang T, Zhang M, Zhou C, Cai H, Zhu J, Wan X. Fumarate-based metal-organic frameworks as a new platform for highly selective removal of fluoride from brick tea. Scientific Reports, 2018, 8(1): 939–950

33 Tan T L, Krusnamurthy P A P, Nakajima H, Rashid S A. Adsorptive, kinetics and regeneration studies of fluoride removal from water using zirconium-based metal organic frameworks. RSC Advances, 2020, 10(32): 18740–18752

34 Zhang J F, Li G R, Zhang Y G, Zhang W, Wang X, Zhao Y, Li J D, Chen Z W. Vertically rooting multifunctional tentacles on carbon scaffold as efficient polysulfide barrier toward superior lithium-sulfur batteries. Nano Energy, 2019, 64: 103905

35 Jiang Y, Liu H, Tan X, Guo L, Zhang J, Liu S, Guo Y, Zhang J, Wang H, Chu W. Monoclinic ZIF-8 nanosheet-derived 2D carbon nanosheets as sulfur Immobilizer for high-performance lithium sulfur batteries. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2017, 9(30): 25239–25249

36 Lei W X, Wang X W, Zhang Y W, Luo Z Y, Xia P T, Zou Y L, Ma Z S, Pan Y, Lin S. Facile synthesis of Fe₃C nano-particles/porous biochar cathode materials for lithium sulfur battery. Journal of Alloys and Compounds, 2021, 835: 157024

37 Wang D, Cao Q, Jing B, Wang X, Huang T, Zeng P, Jiang S, Zhang Q, Sun J. A freestanding metallic tin-modified and nitrogen-doped carbon skeleton as interlayer for lithium-sulfur battery. Chemical Engineering Journal, 2020, 399: 125723

38 Li B Y, Su Q M, Yu L T, Zhang J, Du G H, Wang D, Han D, Zhang M, Ding S K, Xu B S. Tuning the band structure of MoS₂ via Co₉S₈@MoS₂ core-shell structure to boost catalytic activity for lithium-sulfur batteries. ACS Nano, 2020, 14(12): 17285–17294

39 Peng H J, Zhang G, Chen X, Zhang Z W, Xu W T, Huang J Q, Zhang Q. Enhanced electrochemical kinetics on conductive polar mediators for lithium-sulfur batteries. Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2016, 55(42): 12990–12995

40 Baumann A E, Han X, Butala M M, Thoi V S. Lithium thiophosphate functionalized zirconium MOFs for Li-S batteries with enhanced rate capabilities. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2019, 141(44): 17891–17899

41 Qi C, Cai M, Li Z, Jin J, Chowdari B V R, Chen C, Wen Z. Ultrathin TiO₂ surface layer coated TiN nanoparticles in freestanding film for high sulfur loading Li-S battery. Chemical Engineering Journal, 2020, 399: 125674

42 Li Y, Jiang T, Yang H, Lei D, Deng X, Hao C, Zhang F, Guo J. A heterostuctured Co₃S₄/MnS nanotube array as a catalytic sulfur host for lithium-sulfur batteries. Electrochimica Acta, 2020, 330: 135311

43 Ji P, Shang B, Peng Q, Hu X, Wei J. α-MoO₃ spheres as effective polysulfides adsorbent for high sulfur content cathode in lithium-sulfur batteries. Journal of Power Sources, 2018, 400: 572–579

44 Wang Y K, Zhang R F, Chen J, Wu H, Lu S Y, Wang K, Li H L, Harris C J, Xi K, Kumar R V, Ding S. Enhancing catalytic activity of titanium oxide in lithium-sulfur batteries by band engineering. Advanced Energy Materials, 2019, 9(24): 1900953

45 Qian J, Wang F J, Li Y, Wang S, Zhao Y Y, Li W L, Xing Y, Deng L, Sun Q, Li L, Wu F, Chen R. Electrocatalytic interlayer with fast lithium-polysulfides diffusion for lithium-sulfur batteries to enhance electrochemical kinetics under lean electrolyte conditions. Advanced Functional Materials, 2020, 30(27): 2000742

46 Wang M Y, Hua S H, Chao Z S, Li S Y, Tan B, Lai J X, Guo Z Y, Wei X L, Jin H G, Luo W B, . Celgard-supported LiX zeolite membrane as ion-permselective separator in lithium sulfur battery. Journal of Membrane Science, 2020, 611: 118386

47 Chen P, Wu Z, Guo T, Zhou Y, Liu M L, Xia X F, Sun J W, Lu L, Ouyang X P, Wang X, et al. Strong chemical interaction between lithium polysulfides and flame-retardant polyphosphazene for lithium-sulfur batteries with enhanced safety and electrochemical performance. Advanced Materials, 2021, 33(9): 2007549

48 Wang S T, Li X C, Zhang Y, Zheng W J, Dai Y, He G H. Highly efficient polysulfide trapping and ion transferring within a hierarchical porous membrane interlayer for high-energy lithium-sulfur batteries. ACS Applied Energy Materials, 2020, 3(5): 5050–5057

49 Qian J, Wang F J, Li Y, Wang S, Zhao Y Y, Li W L, Xing Y, Deng L, Sun Q, Li L, . Electrocatalytic interlayer with fast lithium-polysulfides diffusion for lithium-sulfur batteries to enhance electrochemical kinetics under lean electrolyte conditions. Advanced Materials, 2020, 30(27): 2000742

50 Yang J L, Zhao S X, Lu Y M, Zeng X T, Lv W, Cao G Z. ZnS spheres wrapped by an ultrathin wrinkled carbon film as a multifunctional interlayer for long life Li-S batteries. Journal of Materials Chemistry. A, Materials for Energy and Sustainability, 2020, 8(1): 231–241

51 He Y S, Li M J, Zhang Y G, Shan Z Z, Zhao Y, Li J D, Liu G H, Liang C Y, Bakenov Z, Li Q. All-purpose electrode design of flexible conductive scaffold toward high performance Li-S batteries. Advanced Functional Materials, 2020, 30(19): 2000613