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There is currently an urgent demand for highly efficient energy storage and conversion systems. Due to its high theoretical energy density, low cost, and environmental compatibility, the lithium sulfur (Li-S) battery has become a typical representative of the next generation of electrochemical power sources. Various approaches have been explored to design and prepare sulfur cathode materials to enhance their electrochemical performance. This Research News article summarizes and compares different sulfur materials for Li-S batteries and particularly focuses on the fine structures, electrochemical performance, and electrode reaction mechanisms of pyrolyzed polyacrylo-nitrile sulfur (pPAN@S) and microporous-carbon/small-sulfur composite materials.

A structure optimized Prussian blue analogue Na1.76Ni0.12Mn0.88[Fe(CN)6]0.98 (PBMN) is synthesized and investigated. Coexistence of inactive Ni(2+) (Fe-C≡N-Ni group) with active Mn(2+/3+) (Fe-C≡N-Mn group) balances the structural disturbances caused by the redox reactions. This cathode material exhibits particularly excellent cycle life with high capacity (118.2 mA h g(-1)).

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Despite clinical applications of the first‐generation tissue adhesives and hemostats, the correlation among microstructure and hemostasis of hydrogels with wound healing is less understood and it is elusive to design high‐performance hydrogels to meet worldwide growing demands in wound closure, hemostasis, and healing. Inspired by the microstructure of extracellular matrix and mussel‐mimetic chemistry, two kinds of coordinated and covalent glycopolypeptide hydrogels are fabricated, which present tunable tissue adhesion strength (14.6–83.9 kPa) and microporous structure (8–18 µm), and lower hemolysis <1.5%. Remarkably, the microporous size mainly controls the hemostasis, and those hydrogels with larger pores of 16–18 µm achieve the fastest hemostasis of ≈14 s and the lowest blood loss of ≈6% than fibrin glue and others. Moreover, both biocompatibility and hemostasis affect wound healing performance, as assessed by hemolysis, cytotoxicity, subcutaneous implantation, and hemostasis and healing assays. Importantly, the glycopolypeptide hydrogel‐treated rat‐skin defect model achieves full wound closure and regenerates thick dermis and epidermis with some hair follicles on day 14. Consequently, this work not only establishes a versatile method for constructing glycopolypeptide hydrogels with tunable adhesion and microporous structure, fast hemostasis, and superior healing functions, but also discloses a useful rationale for designing high‐performance hemostatic and healing hydrogels.