V2O3/VN Catalysts Decorated Free-Standing Multifunctional Interlayer for High-Performance Li-S Battery

The shuttle effect caused by soluble lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) hinders the practical application of lithium–sulfur batteries. The sluggish reaction kinetics of LiPSs results in rapid capacity decay. In this work, we constructed a free-standing multifunctional interlayer decorated with V2O3/VN catalysts to suppress the shuttle effect and boost the redox reaction kinetics. The introduction of VN with strong chemical adsorption improves the conductivity of V2O3, which is beneficial for the kinetics of conversion reaction. In addition, the micro/mesopores inside the structure not only facilitate ion diffusion but also buffer the volume change of the sulfur cathode during the cycling process. Benefiting from the synergistic effects, the fabricated cells exhibit a high specific capacity of 1419.5 mAh g−1 at 0.1C. The cell with V2O3/VN/C exhibits a promising cycling performance over 1000 cycles with a decay rate of 0.037% per cycle at 1C. The synergistic effects of electrocatalysts and conductive carbon material provide inspiration on the development of high-performance Li–S batteries.