Reaction kinetics of lithium–sulfur batteries with a polar Li-ion electrolyte: modeling of liquid phase and solid phase processes

Abstract

The present investigation fits the reaction kinetics of a lithium–sulfur (Li–S) battery with polar electrolyte employing a novel two-phase continuum multipore model. The continuum two-phase model considers processes in both the liquid electrolyte phase and the solid precipitates phase, where the diffusion coefficients of the Li⁺ ions in a solvent-softened solid state are determined from molecular dynamics simulations. Solubility experiments yield the saturation concentration of sulfur and lithium sulfides in the polar electrolyte employed in this study. The model describes the transport of dissolved molecular and ion species in pores of different size in solvated or desolvated form, depending on pore size. The Li–S reaction model in this study is validated for electrolyte 1 M LiPF₆ in EC/DMC. It includes seven redox reactions and two cyclic non-electrochemical reactions in the cathode, and the lithium redox reaction at the anode. Electrochemical reactions are assumed to take place in the electrolyte solution or the solid state and cyclic reactions are assumed to take place in the liquid electrolyte phase only. The determination of the reaction kinetics parameters takes place via fitting the model predictions with experimental data of a cyclic voltammetry cycle with in operando UV-vis spectroscopy.