Green and highly-efficient microwave synthesis route for sulfur/carbon composite for li-s battery

Abstract

Multiporous carbons (MPCs) are prepared using ZnO as a hard template and biomass pyrolysis oil as the carbon source. It is shown that the surface area, pore volume, and mesopore/mi-cropore ratio of the as-prepared MPCs can be easily controlled by adjusting the ZnO/oil ratio. Sul-fur/MPC (S/MPC) composite is prepared by blending sulfur powder with the as-prepared MPCs followed by microwave heating at three different powers (100 W/200 W/300 W) for 60 s. The unique micro/mesostructure characteristics of the resulting porous carbons not only endow the S/MPC composite with sufficient available space for sulfur storage, but also provide favorable and efficient channels for Li-ions/electrons transportation. When applied as the electrode material in a lithium-ion battery (LIB), the S/MPC composite shows a reversible capacity (about 500 mAhg−1) and a high columbic efficiency (>95%) after 70 cycles. Overall, the method proposed in this study provides a simple and green approach for the rapid production of MPCs and S/MPC composite for high-per-formance LIBs.