X. Zheng, H. Hao, S. Jagadeesan, J. Nanda
SLAC,
United States
Keywords: advanced materials, cell development, Na-S batteries
Summary:
Sodium-sulfur (Na-S) batteries hold profound relevance for the broader technical community, from scientists to industries, to utilities due to their high energy density, resource abundance (both Na and S), and low cost. However, challenges have hindered their practical applications, including short cycle life and poor Coulombic efficiency resulting from the low electroactivity of S, and the sodium polysulfide shuttle effect. Our goal is to develop Na-S batteries with high specific capacity (1000 mAh/g) and energy density (200 Wh/kg), with long cycle life (> 500 cycles), integrating advances in both cathode and electrolyte technologies. In this work, we report the design and synthesis of non-noble metal nanomaterials as catalysts to accelerate Na-S reaction kinetics to attain optimal capacity using a low-cost and scalable manufacturing process. We further report the performance of fluorinated solvent-based electrolytes, including fluorinated 1,4-dimethoxybutane and fluorine-functionalized 1,2-diethoxyethane evaluating their capacity and cycle life. This study also leverages advanced materials characterization including X-ray synchrotron facility and techno-economic modeling to benchmark the performance and cost of Na-S batteries. Acknowledgment: This work is funded by the Energy Storage Program, Office of Electricity, Department of Energy, USA