Issue 3, 2024

Electrospun polar-nanofiber PVDF separator for lithium–sulfur batteries with enhanced charge storage capacity and cycling durability

Abstract

Lithium–sulfur batteries (LSBs) provide a high theoretical specific energy up to 5 times higher than that of lithium-ion batteries (2600 vs. ∼500 W h kg−1) but their commercialization is restricted by intrinsic problems such as polysulfide shutting and dendrite growth at the Li metal anode during cycling. A polar, non-ionic, free-standing, electrospun, predominantly β-phase, polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) nanofiber separator membrane has been designed and realised in order to mitigate the polysufide shuttling effect. The β-PVDF sheet, with its inherent polarity, can chemically immobilize the polysulfides and suppress the formation of dendrites in LSBs. The fibrous separator obtained displays the combined advantages of being ultrathin (35 μm thick) and lightweight (0.85 mg cm−2), with very high porosity (79.5%), high wettability (95%), and high electrolyte affinity. In cells that were chosen deliberately to use a commercial cathode and to differ only in the separator used, the nanofibrous polar PVDF film showed high effective ionic conductivity, when LSB-electrolyte impregnated, at nearly double that of the commercially available polypropylene (PP) separator. After 100 GDC cycles at 0.05C, LSBs with polar PVDF separator and the commerical cathode material showed charge storage capacities of approximately 800 mA h g−1, that being 200 mA h g−1 greater than with otherwise identical cells containing a current commercial polyolefin-based separator.

Graphical abstract: Electrospun polar-nanofiber PVDF separator for lithium–sulfur batteries with enhanced charge storage capacity and cycling durability

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
11 Aug. 2023
Accepted
31 Janv. 2024
First published
07 Febr. 2024
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY-NC license

Energy Adv., 2024,3, 625-635

Electrospun polar-nanofiber PVDF separator for lithium–sulfur batteries with enhanced charge storage capacity and cycling durability

I. Mohammad, L. D. J. Barter, V. Stolojan, C. Crean and R. C. T. Slade, Energy Adv., 2024, 3, 625 DOI: 10.1039/D3YA00392B

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