Modification of polypropylene separator with nickel and manganese oxide-decorated carbon nanotubes toward high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries

Benefiting from the substantial energy density and significant theoretical specific capacity, lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs) spark great attention in the realm of advanced power storage. However, the slow kinetics and well-known shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) impede their practical implementation. To tackle these concerns, a modified polypropylene (PP) separator is constructed herein by depositing a thin layer of carbon nanotubes decorated with Ni and MnO nanoparticles (Ni-MnO@CNTs) onto the surface of separator. The Ni-MnO@CNTs modification layer is proved to have good adsorption capabilities and rapid catalytic conversion performance towards LiPSs, which is advantageous for enhancing the electrochemical performance of LSBs. Consequently, the LSBs with Ni-MnO@CNTs/PP separator demonstrate excellent initial specific capacity (1280.1 mAh g −1 at 0.1 C), exceptional rate capability (902.7 mA h g −1 at 2 C), and a prolonged cycle life with a slow attenuation rate of 0.091 % per cycle over 500 cycles at 1 C.