Fluoroethylene carbonate as an important component in organic carbonate electrolyte solutions for lithium sulfur batteries

The benefits of fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC)-based electrolyte solution (1 M LiPF₆ in FEC/dimethyl carbonate (DMC)) over ethylene carbonate (EC)-based electrolyte solution (1 M LiPF₆ in EC/DMC) for the cycling of sulfur/carbon (S/C) composite cathodes were demonstrated for S/C composites prepared with two drastically different types of carbon hosts, micrometer-sized activated carbon powder (AC1) and carbonized polyacrylonitrile (PAN) cloth. The formation of solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) on the surface of the cycled S/C electrodes was demonstrated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS).