Electrochemical properties of lithium/sulfur-polyacrylonitrile-carbon nanotube composite cells using ether-based electrolyte at high rate

Abstract

A sulfur-polyacrylonitrile-carbon nanotube (SPANC) composite is prepared by mixing and heat treatment of sulfur, polyacrylonitrile, and carbon nanotubes, with a high sulfur content of 61.94 wt%. The electrochemical properties of a Li/SPANC cell are investigated using 1,2-dimethoxyethan (ethylene glycol dimethyl ether, DME) and 1,3-dioxlane (ethylene glycol methylene ether, DOL) electrolytes. The Li/SPANC cell using the ether-based electrolytes shows high first discharge capacity of 1,037 mAh g(-1) at a rate of 0.1 C. And at a high rate of 1 C, it presents excellent cyclability, yielding a first discharge capacity of 500 mAh g(-1) and retaining 80% of this capacity at the 100th cycle.