Sulfur Copolymer: A New Cathode Structure for Room-Temperature Sodium-Sulfur Batteries

High-energy electrochemical storage containing earth abundant materials could be a choice for future battery development. Recent research reports indicated the possibility of room-temperature sodium-ion sulfur chemistry for large storage including smart grids. Here, we report a room-temperature sodium sulfur battery cathode that will address the native downsides of a sodium sulfur battery, such as polysulfide shuttling and low electrical conductivity of elemental sulfur. In this Letter, we use a sustainable route which ensures a large sulfur confinement (i.e., similar to 90 wt %) in the cathode structure. The sulfur-embedded polymer is realized via thermal ring-opening polymerization of benzoxazine in the presence of elemental sulfur (CS90) and later composite with reduced graphene oxide (rGO). The resulting CS90 allows a homogeneous distribution of sulfur due to in situ formation of the polymer backbone and allows maximum utilization of sulfur. This unique electrode structure bestows CS90 rGO with an excellent Coulombic efficiency (99%) and healthy cycle life.