Rechargeable aluminum batteries (RABs) are amongst the most promising post-lithium energy storage systems (ESS) with a substantially higher specific volumetric capacity (8046 mA h cm−3), higher safety and lower cost.

Biomass has been utilized as an energy source for thousands of years typically in the form of wood and charcoal. Technological advances create new methodologies to extract energy and chemicals from biomass. The biomass-derived nanostructured porous carbons (BDNPCs) are the most promising sulfur hosts and interlayers in rechargeable lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries. In this article, a comprehensive review is provided in the synthesis of nanostructured porous carbon materials for high-performance rechargeable Li-S batteries by using biomass. The performances of the Li-S batteries dependent on the porous structures (micro, meso and hierarchical) from BDNPCs are discussed, which can provide an in-depth understanding and guide rational design of high-performance cathode materials by using low-cost, sustainable and natural bio-precursors. Furthermore, the current existing challenges and the future research directions for enhancing the performance of Li-S batteries by using natural biomass materials are also addressed.

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has substantially increased. [1] Accordingly, lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs) have gained much attraction as future-generation rechargeable batteries due to the exceptional-specific energy density of 2600 Wh kg −1 and theoretical-specific capacity of 1675 mAh g −1 , which are significantly higher than those of the traditional lithium-ion batteries. [2] Regardless of the great potential, LSBs face some great challenges that hinder their commercialization. Some of the major challenges are the low active material utilization, which is a consequence of the insulating nature of orthorhombic sulfur and its discharged products, volume expansion during redox reactions, and shuttle effect that occurs due to dissolution of long-chain lithium polysulfides (Li 2 S x , 4 ≤ x ≤ 8) into the electrolyte, allowing the formation of insoluble, insulating Li 2 S 2 /Li 2 S precipitates on the surface of lithium anode and sulfur cathode. The dissolution of polysulfides not only retards the reaction kinetics of the electrodes, but also causes low Coulombic efficiency, rapid capacity fading, and poor cycle life of the LSBs. [3] Meanwhile, the lithium is highly reactive and the gas generation during cycling also results in speedy capacity degradation of LSBs. [4] Lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs) have been regarded as the supreme feasible future generation energy storage system for high-energy applications due to the exceptional-specific energy density of 2600 Wh kg −1 and theoretical-specific capacity of 1675 mAh g −1 . Nevertheless, some key challenges which are linked with polysulfide shuttling and sluggish kinetics of polysulfide conversion are the main obstacles in the high electrochemical performance of LSBs. Here, a molybdenum trioxide (MoO 3 ) nanobelt catalytic layer is fabricated on the separator to solve these issues. The MoO 3 layer shows strong chemical interaction with polysulfides by successfully blocking the polysulfides on the separator from shuttling and significantly accelerates the redox reaction of polysulfide conversion. Furthermore, the randomly arranged layers of MoO 3 nanobelts possess enough porous networks that provide effective space for electrolyte infiltration and facile pathway for fast ion transportation. The resultant LSBs exhibit a very high initial capacity of 1377 mAh g −1 . After 200 cycles at 0.5 C, the capacity is 684.4 mAh g −1 with the fading rate of only 0.251% per cycle. Additionally, the MoO 3 modification provides good surface protection of lithium anode and depresses the lithium anode degradation. Battery Performance