A new route of fabrication of cathodes for lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries with high cycle stability is reported. The cathodes are fabricated using porous carbon materials obtained from hybrid materials synthesized by twin polymerization on sulfonated polystyrene microparticles. The sulfonic acid groups act as room temperature catalyst for twin polymerization resulting in the formation of nanostructured phenolic resin/silica hybrid materials on the surface of sulfonated polystyrene particles. The shell formed by phenolic resin is transformed into carbon by simple pyrolysis and the polystyrene core is decomposed simultaneously at the pyrolysis temperature yielding porous carbon/silica nanocomposite hollow spheres. After silica removal, a hierarchical, highly porous carbon is obtained. Melt mixing of the carbon with sulfur is used for the fabrication of cathodes for Li–S batteries. The presence of silica on one hand imposes strength to the sphere wall during the carbonization and depolymerization of polystyrene, and on the other hand generates microporous carbon material for lithium–sulfur batteries. The nanostructured hybrid cathode allows very high capacity of 800–1000 mAh gsulfur −1 and remarkable reversible cycling stability and rate capability over 200 cycles at 0.1C rate and over 440 cycles at 1C rate for Li–S batteries.

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Foamed organic/silica hybrid materials are synthesized via cationic polymerization of organic carbonates with twin monomers. They are converted into hierarchically structured carbon and silica.

The production of metal‐based hybrid laminates, such as aluminum combined with thermoplastics like polyamide 6, requires a precise and purposeful design of the interface between the two components. The utilization of twin polymerization has been successfully examined and an improved adhesion behavior is shown. By utilizing the monomers 2,2′‐spirobi[4H‐1,3,2‐benzodioxasiline] and 2‐(3‐amino‐n‐propyl)‐2‐methyl‐4H‐1,3,2‐benzodioxasiline in a molar ratio of 15:85, medial tensile shear strength values of 12.9 ± 3.9 MPa are achieved in tests according to DIN EN 1465. Electron microscopic and atomic force microscopic investigations give further structural details of the hybrid material. Additionally, the results of nanoindentation and microscratch tests clearly demonstrate that the choice of an adhesion promoter depends on its chemical as well as its mechanical characteristics.