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Activated graphene with tailored pore structure parameters for long cycle-life lithium–sulfur batteries

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Abstract

Activated graphene (AG) with various specific surface areas, pore volumes, and average pore sizes is fabricated and applied as a matrix for sulfur. The impacts of the AG pore structure parameters and sulfur loadings on the electrochemical performance of lithium-sulfur batteries are systematically investigated. The results show that specific capacity, cycling performance, and Coulombic efficiency of the batteries are closely linked to the pore structure and sulfur loading. An AG3/S composite electrode with a high sulfur loading of 72 wt.% exhibited an excellent long-term cycling stability (50% capacity retention over 1,000 cycles) and extra-low capacity fade rate (0.05% per cycle). In addition, when LiNO3 was used as an electrolyte additive, the AG3/S electrode exhibited a similar capacity retention and high Coulombic efficiency (∼98%) over 1,000 cycles. The excellent electrochemical performance of the series of AG3/S electrodes is attributed to the mixed micro/mesoporous structure, high surface area, and good electrical conductivity of the AG matrices and the well-distributed sulfur within the micro/mesopores, which is beneficial for electrical and ionic transfer during cycling.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51202106, 21671170, and 21201010), the New Century Excellent Talents of the University in China (No. NCET-13-0645), the Innovation Scientists and Technicians Troop Construction Projects of Henan Province (No. 164200510018), the Plan for Scientific Innovation Talent of Henan Province, the Program for Innovative Research Team (in Science and Technology) in University of Henan Province (Nos. 14IRTSTHN004 and 16IRTSTHN003), the Science & Technology Foundation of Henan Province (Nos. 122102210253 and 13A150019), the Science & Technology Foundation of Jiangsu Province (No. BK20150438), the Six Talent Plan (No. 2015-XCL-030), and the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (No. 2012M521115). We also acknowledge the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions and the technical support we received at the Testing Center of Yangzhou University.

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  1. School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225002, China

    Mingbo Zheng, Songtao Zhang, Zixia Lin & Huan Pang

  2. CAS Key Laboratory of Materials for Energy Conversion, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China

    Shuangqiang Chen & Yan Yu

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  1. Mingbo Zheng
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Correspondence to Huan Pang or Yan Yu.

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Zheng, M., Zhang, S., Chen, S. et al. Activated graphene with tailored pore structure parameters for long cycle-life lithium–sulfur batteries. Nano Res. 10, 4305–4317 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-017-1659-3

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