%0 Journal Article
%A Liang Zhang
%A Min Ling
%A Jun Feng
%A Liqiang Mai
%A Gao Liu
%A Jinghua Guo
%B Energy Storage Materials
%D 2018
%G eng
%P 24 - 29
%R 10.1016/j.ensm.2017.09.001
%T The synergetic interaction between LiNO<sub>3</sub> and lithium polysulfides for suppressing shuttle effect of lithium-sulfur batteries
%V 11
%8 03/2018
%! Energy Storage Materials
%X <p>LiNO<sub>3</sub> has been widely used as an effective electrolyte additive in lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries to suppress the polysulfide shuttle effect. To better understand the mechanism of suppressed shuttle effect by LiNO<sub>3</sub>, herein we report a comprehensive investigation of the influence of LiNO<sub>3</sub> additive on the formation process of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer on lithium anode of Li-S batteries by operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). We observed that a compact and stable SEI layer composed of Li<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>3</sub> and Li<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub> on top of lithium anode is formed during the initial discharge process due to the synergetic effect of shuttled polysulfides and LiNO<sub>3</sub>, which can effectively suppress the subsequent reaction between polysulfides in electrolyte and lithium metal and thus result in the alleviation of polysulfide shuttle effect. In contrast, when using electrolyte without LiNO<sub>3</sub>, the shuttled polysulfides continuously react with lithium metal to form insulating Li<sub>2</sub>S on lithium anode, leading to the irreversible capacity loss. Our present operando XAS study provides a valuable insight into the important role of LiNO<sub>3</sub> for the protection of lithium anodes, which will be beneficial for the further development of new electrolyte additives for high-performance Li-S batteries.</p>