Polysulfide regulation vs anode modification: Perspectives on commercializing lithium–sulfur batteries

Abstract

Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries are considered the promising energy-storage devices to replace the aging lithium-ion batteries. Indeed, they have gained much attention in both academia and industry due to their high theoretical energy density. Although significant progress has been achieved in the field of academia, the same thing cannot be stated for the commercial production of Li–S batteries. This is evidenced by the fact that only a few studies have demonstrated a pouch-cell approach. Thus, it is important to realize the significant gap between academic research and the real-world production of lithium–sulfur cells. In this perspective, we discuss the issues and challenges behind the large-scale production of Li–S batteries; moreover, we highlight the recent advances in the development of lithium–sulfur pouch cells that are achieved either by polysulfide regulation or by anode modification. We hope that this review will attract more attention to the development of lithium–sulfur pouch cells to overcome the practical hurdles of large-scale production.