Electrochemical properties of sulfur electrode containing nano Al2O3 for lithium/sulfur cell

Abstract

To prevent the dissolution of lithium polysulfides into liquid electrolyte and to promote the lithium/sulfur redox reaction, nano-sized Al2O3 particles having large specific surface area were added into sulfur electrode. The effects of nano-sized Al2O3 particles on the electrochemical properties of sulfur electrode for lithium/sulfur battery were investigated using CV measurements, charge/discharge tests and ionic conductivity measurements of liquid electrolyte. From the results, the sulfur electrode containing nano Al2O3 particles showed good cycle performance and higher discharge capacity of 660mAh g(-1)-sulfur than that of the sulfur electrode without nano Al2O3. It is therefore concluded that the addition of nano-sized Al2O3 particles gives the beneficial effects of preventing the dissolution of lithium polysulfides into liquid electrolyte.