(276d) Fundamentals of Lithium-Sulfur Batteries and Lithium Metal Anode

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries and Li metal anode have garnered significant attention in recent years in the field of electrochemistry, electrochemical engineering, and materials science and engineering. There is a tremendous amount of publications on these topics in current literature, which are difficult to go through and distinguish for students who are new in the field. In this presentation, we will first discuss the working mechanism and technical challenges of Li-S batteries. The emphasis will be on the practical parameters such as areal sulfur loading, areal capacity, and the mass ratio between electrolyte and sulfur, and the fundamentals behind these parameters. We will then introduce the essential properties and parameters of Li metal anode. Specifically, the processes and reactions during Li deposition-stripping in liquid electrolytes will be discussed with the emphasis on the phenomena generally known as Li “dendrites”.