In situ enhance lithium polysulfides redox kinetics by carbon cloth/MoO3 self-standing electrode for lithium–sulfur battery

Lithium-sulfur battery is expected to be the new generation of high-performance electrochemical storage system benefiting from its high energy density and low cost. However, the slow redox kinetics caused by the low conductivity of sulfur and the shuttle effect result from lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) limit its practical utility. In this work, a highly efficient strategy of freestanding carbon cloth supported molybdenum oxide (CC/MoO 3 ) with in situ deposition of Li 2 S 8 as an active matrix is designed. This chemistry enables strong affinity of Li 2 S 8 on CC/MoO 3 electrode, meanwhile, the strong polarity of MoO 3 catalyzes the mutual transformation of LiPSs and inhibits the shuttle of liquid LiPSs. With the above superiorities, the CC/MoO 3 @Li 2 S 8 electrode shows impressive electrochemical performance, with a high initial discharge specific capacity of 1274 mAh g −1 at a rate of 0.1 C with the sulfur loading of 2 mg cm −2 , and a capacity retention rate of 93.1% compared to the initial stable specific capacity. Even with a high sulfur loading of 4 mg cm −2 , it still maintains high electrochemical activity with a high reversible specific capacity of 916 mAh g −1 after 100 cycles at 0.2 C. Those results show that coupling polar metal oxide material with flexible conductive carbon cloth provides a highly efficient catalytic/conductive network to accelerate sulfur utilization and stability. Graphical abstract A highly efficient strategy of freestanding carbon cloth supported molybdenum oxide with in-situ deposition of Li 2 S 8 as active matrix is realized, resulting in a robust Li + storage capacity for lithium-sulfur battery.