lithium sulphur accumulator (LiS)

Lithium-sulfur batteries(LiS) are high-performance rechargeable batteries that are assigned to the 2nd lithium battery generation and reached market maturity in the middle of the decade. They are characterized by a significantly higher energy density compared with classic lithium-ion batteries and achieve theoretical values of almost 3,000 Wh/kg and are therefore of particular interest for electromobility in the medium term.

Lithium-sulfur batteries have a metallic lithium electrode as anode and a cathode consisting of carbon disulfide. Lithium ions are exchanged between these two electrodes. In this battery model, each sulfur atom can bind two lithium ions. Since both lithium and sulfur are very light, the weight of lithium-sulfur batteries is much less than other lithium batteries.

One of the problems of lithium-sulfur batteries is the electrical properties of sulfur, which is hardly conductive. In order to improve the bonding of the lithium ions, processes have been developed at the University of Munich using very small carbon particles to increase the surface area of the sulfur. Other problems to be solved are the undesirable chemical by-products generated during the reaction and the safety-relevant requirements for the use of lithium-sulfur batteries in automotive technology.