Abstract
Despite hydrogen bonds widely existing in functional polymeric binders, the non-covalent interaction has not been investigated systematically. Owing to the abundant amide groups and easy access to hydrogen bonded assembly, poly (ethyl oxazoline) (PEtOx) is considered a suitable tool to explore the relationship between hydrogen bonds and the electrochemical performance of sulfur cathodes. By adding different amounts of proton-donating poly (acrylic acid) (PAA) into PEtOx, a series of hydrogen-bonded complexes can be obtained easily. The complexes as modified binders are then evaluated by electrochemical tests on the corresponding sulfur cathodes. The results suggest that the sulfur cathode based on the binder of PEtOx: PAA with the mass ratio of 4:1 (PP41) delivers a superior cycling stability to other ones. DSC and XRD tests confirm that the preferable electrochemical performance originates from the optimum hydrogen-bonding density, which balances the well-stretched polymeric chain and the mechanical strength of the cross-linked complexes. Benefiting from the abundant amide groups as well as the well-distributed polymer chain, the PP41-based sulfur cathode displays a more stable cycling performance than the PEtOx and PVdF-based one.
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