Carbon Nanotubes for Metal-Sulfur Batteries

Metal-sulfur (M-S) batteries with high theoretical energy densities and acceptable production costs have placed great expectations on the large-scale energy storage applications in the post-Li-ion battery (LIBs) era. However, the serious shuttle effect of polysulfides and high-reactivity metal anodes with unstable stripping/plating electrochemistry significantly limited their performance and applications. This chapter briefly introduces the working principle and challenges of M-S batteries as well as the structures and manipulation of carbon nanotubes (CNTs). Emphatically, the important progress and mechanism of CNTs-based materials in addressing the above-mentioned issues via acting as efficient hosts of S cathode and metal anode, as well as functionalized interlayers and artificial solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) film, are summarized. Finally, a few key points that need to be particularly concerned are proposed. These breakthroughs are believed to promote the understanding of the fundamental electrochemistry in M-S batteries as well as accelerate their rational design, development, and commercialization.