To enhance the long stability of sulfur cathode for a high energy lithium-sulfur battery system, a sulfur-carbon sphere composite was prepared by encapsulating sulfur into micropores of carbon spheres by thermal treatment of a mixture of sublimed sulfur and carbon spheres. The elemental sulfur exists as a highly dispersed state inside the micropores of carbon spheres with a large surface area and a narrow pore distribution, based on the analyses of the X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), thermogravimetry (TG) and local element line-scanning. It is demonstrated from galvanostatic discharge-charge process, cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS) that the sulfur-carbon sphere composite has a large reversible capacity and an excellent high rate discharge capability as cathode materials. In particular, the sulfur-carbon sphere composite with 42 wt% sulfur presents a long electrochemical stability up to 500 cycles, based on the constrained electrochemical reaction inside the narrow micropores of carbon spheres due to strong adsorption. Therefore, the electrochemical reaction constrained inside the micropores proposed here would be the dominant factor for the enhanced long stability of the sulfur cathode. The knowledge acquired in this study is important not only for the design of efficient new electrode materials, but also for understanding the effect of the micropores on the electrochemical cycle stability.

The Mn-based oxides including MnO, Mn3O4, Mn2O3, MnO2, CoMn2O4, ZnMn2O4and their carbonaceous composite/oxide supports with different morphologies and compositions as anode materials are reviewed.

There is a great interest in the utilization of silicon-based anodes for lithium-ion batteries. However, its poor cycling stability, which is caused by a dramatic volume change during lithium-ion intercalation, and intrinsic low electric conductivity hamper its industrial applications. A facile strategy is reported here to fabricate graphene oxide-immobilized NH2-terminated silicon nanoparticles (NPs) negative electrode (Si@NH2/GO) directed by hydrogen bonding and cross-linked interactions to enhance the capacity retention of the anode. The NH2-modified Si NPs first form strong hydrogen bonds and covalent bonds with GO. The Si@NH2/GO composite further forms hydrogen bonds and covalent bonds with sodium alginate, which acts as a binder, to yield a stable composite negative electrode. These two chemical cross-linked/hydrogen bonding interactions-one between NH2-modified Si NPs and GO, and another between the GO and sodium alginate-along with highly mechanically flexible graphene oxide, produced a robust network in the negative electrode system to stabilize the electrode during discharge and charge cycles. The as-prepared Si@NH2/GO electrode exhibits an outstanding capacity retention capability and good rate performance, delivering a reversible capacity of 1000 mAh g(-1) after 400 cycles at a current of 420 mA g(-1) with almost 100% capacity retention. The results indicated the importance of system-level strategy for fabricating stable electrodes with improved electrochemical performance.