In this work, the sulfur (S)/activated carbon (AC)/carbon nanotube (CNT) composite cathode materials for lithium–sulfur batteries are prepared by simple mixing and heating fusion.
The as-prepared activated carbon was developed as a conducting framework for lithium–sulfur battery cathode materials. The resulting activated carbon/sulfur composite cathode possesses a high specific capacity, good rate capability, and long-term cycling performance.
For instance, traditional carbon/sulfur cathodes in Li-S batteries were usually fabricated by mixing carbon materials and sulfur with binder and coating them onto current collector. It cannot make full utilization of sulfur due to the poor conductive interaction between carbon and sulfur in charge/discharging process.
The nanostructured carbon-based materials focus on active carbon, carbon nanotubes, graphene and their composites. The role of these carbon-based materials in Li-S batteries emphasize on the design of sulfur host materials, the modification of functional separators as well as the protection of the Li anode.
Therefore, a variety of freestanding activated carbon such as carbon fiber, carbon cloth, and carbon aerogels were developed to serve as the sulfur hosts of Li-S batteries instead of the traditional carbon powders [, , , , , , ].
In this section, we will discuss the utilization of nanostructured carbon-based materials including activated carbon CNT, graphene, and their composites as the sulfur hosts and the interface between the carbon materials and sulfur in Li-S batteries, respectively (Table 1). Table 1.
Summary and perspectives In terms of high specific capacity, excellent rate capability, and long cycling life, nanostructured carbon-based materials play a significant role in Li-S batteries. Active carbon, CNT, graphene and their composites are the most widely used carbon-based materials for the Li-S batteries.
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