The success of electric vehicles requires the development of safe, environmentally friendly, rechargeable batteries with a high energy density. Recently developed lithium sulfur batteries meet all these criteria due to their high energy density. However, limited lithium resources as well as unresolved safety issues hinder a commercial usage.
Magnesium is a promising alternative, as it overcomes the previously mentioned drawbacks and has a high theoretical energy density with a sulfur cathode. The problem here is to find a suitable electrolyte for sulfur magnesium (S/Mg) batteries, that is stable with the electrode materials and has a wide electrochemical window.
Maximilian Fichtner, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlsruhe, Germany, and colleagues used hexamethyldisilazide (HMDS)2Mg-based diglyme and tetraglyme (HMDS = hexamethyldisilazide) as non-nucleophilic electrolyte solutions with an ionic liquid as an additive. This combination shows beneficial effects to the electrochemical conversion between Mg and S in Mg/S batteries and a high discharge potential of about 1.65 V was recorded for the first time.
However, a large hysteresis between charge and discharge is revealed, which indicates a quick fading in capacity and makes further improvement on Mg/S batteries necessary.
Article Views: 3988
Please note that to comment on an article you must be registered and logged in.
Registration is for free, you may already be registered to receive, e.g., the newsletter. When you register on this website, please ensure you view our terms and conditions. All comments are subject to moderation.