Capacity fading on cycling of lithium/sulfur batteries may result from at least four processes: increase of SEI thickness resistance, loss of cathode capacity (precipitation of sulfur species outside the cathode), agglomeration and thickening of sulfur species and increase in cell impedance as a result of reduction of the electrolyte. A very important issue that has not been properly addressed up to now is the influence of the type and content of the cathode binder on the cell parameters and on the electrochemical performance of lithium/sulfur batteries. We present here a detailed analysis and discussion of the electrochemical behavior, during prolonged cycling, of Li2S-based cathodes containing five different binders. The binders under investigation are: poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF-HFP), polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), mix of PVP with polyethylene imine (PEI), polyaniline (PANI) and lithium polyacrylate (LiPAA). Sulfur utilization in the cathode follows the order of LiPAA > PVP:PEI > PVP > PVDF-HFP > PANI. Depending on the type of binder, cells provide 500 to 1400 mAh/g (S), 94.6–98.0% faradaic efficiency and enable more than 500 reversible cycles.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.