Issue 13, 2024

Advancing lithium–sulfur battery efficiency: utilizing a 2D/2D g-C3N4@MXene heterostructure to enhance sulfur evolution reactions and regulate polysulfides under lean electrolyte conditions

Abstract

Lithium–sulfur batteries (LSBs) show promise for achieving a high energy density of 500 W h kg−1, despite challenges such as poor cycle life and low energy efficiency due to sluggish redox kinetics of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) and sulfur's electronic insulating nature. We present a novel 2D Ti3C2 Mxene on a 2D graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) heterostructure designed to enhance LiPS conversion kinetics and adsorption capacity. In a pouch cell configuration with lean electrolyte conditions (∼5 μL mg−1), the g-C3N4-Mx/S cathode exhibited excellent rate performance, delivering ∼1061 mA h g−1 at C/8 and retaining ∼773 mA h g−1 after 190 cycles with a Coulombic efficiency (CE) of 92.7%. The battery maintained a discharge capacity of 680 mA h g−1 even at 1.25 C. It operated reliably at an elevated sulfur loading of 5.9 mg cm−2, with an initial discharge capacity of ∼900 mA h g−1 and a sustained CE of over 83% throughout 190 cycles. Postmortem XPS and EIS analyses elucidated charge–discharge cycle-induced changes, highlighting the potential of this heterostructured cathode for commercial garnet LSB development.

Graphical abstract: Advancing lithium–sulfur battery efficiency: utilizing a 2D/2D g-C3N4@MXene heterostructure to enhance sulfur evolution reactions and regulate polysulfides under lean electrolyte conditions

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Communication
Submitted
24 Febr. 2024
Accepted
15 Apr. 2024
First published
16 Apr. 2024

Mater. Horiz., 2024,11, 3090-3103

Advancing lithium–sulfur battery efficiency: utilizing a 2D/2D g-C3N4@MXene heterostructure to enhance sulfur evolution reactions and regulate polysulfides under lean electrolyte conditions

V. K. Tomer, O. A. T. Dias, A. M. Gouda, R. Malik and M. Sain, Mater. Horiz., 2024, 11, 3090 DOI: 10.1039/D4MH00200H

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