Rational design of MoS_(2) nanosheets decorated on mesoporous hollow carbon spheres as a dual-functional accelerator in sulfur cathode for advanced pouch-type Li–S batteries

Developing sulfur cathodes with high catalytic activity on accelerating the sluggish redox kinetics of lithium polysulfides(Li PSs) and unveiling their mechanisms are pivotal for advanced lithium–sulfur(Li–S)batteries. Herein, MoS2 is verified to reduce the Gibbs free energy for rate-limiting step of sulfur reduction and the dissociation energy of lithium sulfide(Li2 S) for the first time employing theoretical calculations. The Mo S2 nanosheets coated on mesoporous hollow carbon spheres(MHCS) are then reasonably designed as a sulfur host for high-capacity and long-life Li–S battery, in which MHCS can guarantee the high sulfur loading and fast electron/ion transfer. It is revealed that the shuttle effect is efficiently inhibited because of the boosted conversion of Li PSs. As a result, the coin cell based on the MHCS@Mo S2-S cathode exhibits stable cycling performance maintaining 735.7 mAh g^(-1) after 500 cycles at 1.0 C. More importantly, the pouch cell employing the MHCS@Mo S2-S cathodes achieves high specific capacity of1353.2 m Ah g^(-1) and prominent cycle stability that remaining 960.0 m Ah g^(-1) with extraordinary capacity retention of 79.8% at 0.1 C after 170 cycles. Therefore, this work paves a new avenue for developing practical high specific energy and long-life pouch-type Li–S batteries.