Xia Xinhui, a researcher at the School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, developed the first high-energy-density lithium-sulfur battery based on mold spore carbon technology. They introduced the mold spore carbon fermented from discarded fruits and vegetables into the energy field as energy storage materials to obtain high energy density batteries. Its specific capacity is three times higher than the best battery on the market. In the future, it is expected to solve the problem of long-distance driving ability of electric vehicles. In addition, it has many advantages in terms of cost and service life. The result has recently been ranked as the world's top material journal "Advanced Materials". Report.
'Lithium-sulfur battery is a new type of high-energy density battery. It uses sulfur as the positive electrode of the battery and lithium metal as the negative electrode. Its theoretical capacity is far more than the current commercial lithium battery. ' Xia Xinhui introduced that the sulfur element has high capacity density and sufficient energy. It is considered as the next generation of battery materials. However, a single fatal flaw in the sulfur element alone is that the sulfur itself is insulated, and the intermediate products of the reaction are dissolved in the electrolyte to cause loss.
For a long time, the scientific community has been looking for a host for sulfur, fixing the sulfur element, and the research of the Xia Xinhui team began. Out of curiosity, they did an experiment with two rotten oranges, and occasionally opened the research direction. The researchers firstly fermented the mold by fermentation, and then optimized the structure by using the pore-forming ability of nickel. After high-temperature carbonization, a new mold spore carbon/nanophosphorus nickel composite was prepared. The fusion, at a temperature of 155 degrees Celsius, allows the sulfur to melt and mix with the carbon material in a molten state, and the carried sulfur enters the host.
The results show that this new mold spore carbon/nanophosphorus phosphide benefits from its high porosity, high electrical conductivity, large specific surface area and multiple sulfur storage sites, and can be used for physical/chemical interaction of intermediates. Adsorption can greatly improve battery performance. Not only that, if the waste food and vegetables can be re-fermented and used to prepare mold spore carbon materials, waste utilization can be realized, resulting in good economic benefits.
