High-performance Cathode Materials Research Articles

Optimizing Electrocatalysis and Domain Effects of Graphene on Li2S Cathodes for High-Efficient-Stable Li─S Batteries.

Reducing the initial activation barrier of Li2S is crucial for enhancing the coulomb efficiency and cycle life of Li─S batteries. Herein two Li2S-graphene cathode architectures are constructed and investigated the electrocatalytic and domain effects of two graphene on Li2S. Systematic studies reveal an unprecedented relevancy between Li2S activation and graphene electrocatalysis, as well as an intrinsic relationship between Li2S stability and the graphene domain. A dramatically reduced initial activation potential of 2.8V is achieved via the S─C bonding electrocatalysis of Li2S-graphene structure, much lower than the initial activation potential of 3.68V triggered by two-phase electrocatalysis of Li2S/graphene composite. Density functional theory calculations offer mechanism insights into the electrocatalytic effect of S─C bonding on reduced overpotential, and in situ NMR provides solid evidence for the confinement effect of core-shell structure on enhanced cyclability. Notably, a specially designed Li2S@graphene cathode with core-shell structure and S─C interactions exhibit both superior electrocatalytic activation and electrochemical reversibility, enabling Li─S battery promising electrochemical properties, including low charge-discharge overpotential, high specific capacity, and excellent cycling performance. More importantly, it demonstrates excellent chemical compatibility within various electrolytes. This study provides valuable theoretical insights for the development of high-performance Li2S-graphene cathode materials.

Solid-Phase Synthesis of Poly(imino anthraquinone)s for Low-Cost and High-Performance Bipolar Organic Cathode Materials.

Organic polymer cathode materials have emerged as promising candidates for constructing sustainable lithium and post-lithium batteries. However, it remains a significant challenge to synthesize electroactive polymers with the desired energy density and cycling stability in a cost-effective manner. Herein, we present a simple yet effective solid-phase method for synthesizing a series of bipolar quinone-amine polymers, specifically, poly(imino anthraquinone)s (PIAQs). The dehydration polycondensation reaction, occurring at 350 °C between the amino and hydroxy groups of low-cost diaminoanthraquinone and dihydroxyanthraquinone monomers, yields four PIAQ samples with identical repeating units but varied connection patterns. As cathode materials for lithium batteries employing ester-type electrolytes, they exhibit comparable charge-discharge curves and energy densities within 1.5-4.3 V but varying cycling stabilities proportional to their polymerization degrees. For example, despite its lowest-cost monomers, PIAQ-44 demonstrates one of the most outstanding electrochemical performances among polymer cathode materials, boasting a reversible capacity of 248 mA h g-1, an average discharge voltage of 2.53 V, and a high cycling stability (75% capacity retention after 2000 cycles). Moreover, the slight differences in electrochemical performance among the four PIAQs, pertaining to bipolar redox, irreversible deprotonation, and capacity fade, have been thoroughly elucidated to provide constructive insights into quinone-amine polymers.

High-entropy Li-rich layered oxide cathode for Li-ion batteries

High-entropy oxides (HEOs) are emerging as promising cathode materials for Li-ion batteries (LIBs) due to their stable solid-state phase and compositional flexibility. Herein, we investigate the structural and electrochemical properties of a novel non-equimolar high-entropy cathode material, termed high-entropy Li-rich layered oxide (HE-LLO, Li1.15Na0.05Ni0.19Mn0.56Fe0.02Mg0.02Al0.02O1.97F0.03), in comparison to a pristine Li-rich layered oxide (PR-LLO, Li1.2Ni0.2Mn0.6O2). The incorporation of multiple cations (Na+, Al3+, Mg2+, Fe3+) and anion (F−) into HE-LLO introduces compositional diversity, enhancing structural stability through the entropy stabilization effect. Theoretical calculations confirm a significantly higher configurational entropy in HE-LLO compared to PR-LLO, supporting its high-entropy nature. Electrochemical evaluations demonstrate that HE-LLO exhibits considerable capacity retention, preserving 76.8 % of its discharge capacity at 0.5C after 200 cycles, compared to only 36.2 % for PR-LLO. Even under high-temperature conditions, HE-LLO outperformed PR-LLO, maintaining 76.1 % of its discharge capacity after 100 cycles at 5C, while PR-LLO retained only 12.4 %. These enhancements are attributed to the improved phase reversibility and higher Li+ ion diffusion coefficients of HE-LLO, validated by ex-situ characterizations using a synchrotron X-ray technique, along with density functional theory (DFT) calculations. These findings highlight the promise of non-equimolar HEOs as a novel design strategy for high-performance cathode materials.

Zn-Doped Hollow Cubic MnO2 as a High-Performance Cathode Material for Zn Ion Batteries.

Manganese-based compounds have the characteristics of high theoretical capacity, low cost and stable performance, thus become a research hotspot for cathode materials of zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs). However, in the process of charging and discharging, it is accompanied by problems such as structural collapse and low conductivity, which resulted in severe capacity degration during cycles. In this paper, a kind of Zn2+ doped MnO2 hollow cube cathode material (Zn-MnO2) was prepared by self-sacrificing template method. The Zn2+ doped in MnO2 crystals can induce oxygen vacancies in the structure, thereby improving the structural stability ion diffusion coefficient and electrical conductivity of the material. After 100 cycles at 0.3 A g-1, the high specific capacity of 281.2 mA h g-1 is still maintained. Through ex-situ XPS and ex-situ XRD tests, the mechanism of charge-discharge process was discussed. The results show that the storage mechanism of Zn-MnO2 is H+ and Zn2+ insertion/removal and Mn3+/Mn2+ two-electron reaction pathway. The total state density (TDOS) and partial state density (PDOS) of Zn-MnO2 and MnO2 further demonstrated that the doping of Zn2+ enhanced the electron conductivity and is beneficial to the electron transfer during the electrochemical reaction.

Size-Dependent Effects of ZIF-8 Derived Cathode Materials on Performance of Zinc-Ion Capacitors.

Zinc-ion capacitors (ZICs) have attracted great attention due to a series of advantages. However, the cathode materials are still the bottleneck for high-performance ZICs to be achieved. Therefore, ZIF-8-derived porous carbons are one of the most promising candidates but ZIF-8 nanoparticles with different sizes exhibited various electrochemical performances in ZICs. Herein, a series of monodispersed ZIF-8 nanoparticles are first prepared by a temperature-controlled process to fabricate the corresponding ZIF-8-based porous carbon nanoparticles with pre-designed sizes. The as-prepared materials have been tested as cathode materials in ZICs. Thus, their size effect allowed us to disclose its correlation with other factors such as ion transport/storage and capacitance. The results reveal that the optimal-sized porous carbon particles can effectively shorten the ion transport distance and accelerate the ion diffusion rate, resulting in lower electrical resistance, larger ion diffusion coefficients, and faster electron transport. The presented findings can facilitate the design of new advanced cathode materials paving the way for the development of high-performance cathode materials for ZICs in the future.

Regulating Intermolecular Hydrogen Bonds in Organic Cathode Materials to Realize Ultra-stable, Flexible and Low-temperature Aqueous Zinc-organic Batteries.

Rational design of molecular structures is one of the effective strategies to obtain high-performance organic cathode materials. However, besides the optimization of single-molecule structures, the influence of the "weak" interaction forces (e.g. hydrogen bonds) in organic cathode materials on the performance of batteries should be fully considered. Herein, three organic small molecules with different numbers of hydroxyl groups (namely nitrogen heterocyclic tetraketone (DAB), monohydroxyl nitrogen heterocyclic dione (HDA), dihydroxyl nitrogen heterocyclic dione (DHT)) were selected as the cathodes of aqueous zinc ion batteries (AZIBs), and the effect of the intermolecular hydrogen bonds on their electrochemical performance was studied for the first time. Clearly, the stable hydrogen-bond networks built through the hydroxyl groups significantly enhance the cycle stability of organic small-molecule cathodes and facilitate rapid proton conduction between the hydrogen-bond networks through the Grotthuss mechanism, thereby endowing them with excellent rate performance. In addition, a larger and more dense two-dimensional hydrogen-bond network can be constructed through multiple hydroxyl groups, further enhancing the structural stability of organic small-molecule cathodes, giving them better cycle tolerance, excellent rate performance, and extreme environmental tolerance.

Revealing the Dual Role of Ammonia in the Hydroxide Co-precipitation Synthesis of Cobalt-free Nickel-rich LiNi0.9Mn0.05Al0.05O2 (NMA955) Cathode Materials for Lithium-ion Batteries.

Nickel-rich cobalt-free LiNi0.9Mn0.05Al0.05O2 (NMA955) is considered a promising cathode material to address the scarcity and soaring cost of cobalt. Particle size and elemental composition significantly impact the electrochemical performance of NMA955 cathodes. However, differences in precipitation rates among metal ions coveys a challenge in obtaining cathode materials with the desired particle size and composition via hydroxide co-precipitation synthesis. Utilizing complexing agents like ammonia offers an effective strategy to tackle these issues. Here, we investigate the optimal ammonia concentration to achieve moderate particle size and precise material composition. Although ammonia only forms complex coordination with transition metals, its concentration also affects the final product's precipitation and composition, including aluminum. This study shows that ammonia serves a dual function in NMA synthesis via hydroxide co-precipitation, i.e., regulating particle size and adjusting elemental composition. It was found that an ammonia concentration of 1.2 M achieved optimal particle size and composition, resulting in superior electrochemical performance. NMA955 synthesized in 1.2 M ammonia demonstrated a high specific capacity of 188.12 mAh g-1 at 0.1C, retained 71.16% of its capacity after 200 cycles at 0.2C, and delivered 110.30 mAh g-1 at 5C. These results suggest tuning ammonia concentration is crucial for producing high-performance cathode materials.

Enhancement of K storage performance in K3V3-xLax(PO4)4/C cathode materials for potassium-ion batteries via La3+ gradient doping

K3V3(PO4)4(KVP) is recognized as a promising cathode material for potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) due to its high capacity and robust cycling performance. However, its practical application is hindered by low electrical conductivity. This study reports on the synthesis of K3V3-xLax(PO4)4/C materials with varying levels of lanthanum doping, using sol-gel method. We conducted a systematic investigation into the effects of La3+ doping on the crystal structure, morphological characteristics, and electrochemical performance through physicochemical characterization, theoretical calculations, and electrochemical testing. Theoretical calculations suggest that La3+ doping reduces the band gap energy. Electrochemical tests demonstrate that appropriate levels of La3+ doping enhance the electrochemical performance of K3V3-xLax(PO4)4/C. Specifically, K3V2.98La0.02(PO4)4/C shows excellent electrochemical performance. After 100 cycles at 200 mA g−1, the discharge specific capacity reaches 59 mAh g−1, and after 300 cycles at 400 mA g−1, the reversible specific capacity maintains at 48 mAh g−1—nearly twice that of the undoped KVP/C. The enhanced electrochemical performance of these materials is attributed to La3+ doping, which appropriately enlarges the unit cell volume while stabilizing the crystal structure, improving K+ diffusion capability, and boosting the intrinsic electronic conductivity of the material. These findings offer new insights for developing cost-effective and high-performance cathode materials for PIBs.

Progress in the Application of LiMnPO4 Nanomaterials in Lithium-ion Battery Cathode

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have become vital in today's energy storage systems, especially for electric cars and portable gadgets. High energy density, extended cycle life, and quick charging times are features of lithium batteries. Compared to conventional batteries, they are lightweight, ecologically benign, and have a low self-discharge rate. LiMnPO4 nanomaterials have garnered significant interest among various cathode materials due to their superior thermal stability, safety, and high operating voltage. The main topics of this paper are the structural characteristics, production techniques, and performance improvements of LiMnPO4 nanoparticles as LIBs cathodes. The basic operating principles of LIBs were covered in this article, with particular attention paid to the redox reactions occurring at the electrodes, the unique olivine structure of LiMnPO4, and how these factors affect electrochemical performance. The efficiency of many synthesis methods, such as spray pyrolysis, sol-gel, solid-state, hydrothermal, and solvothermal processes, in yielding superior LiMnPO4 nanoparticles is assessed. Additionally, surface modifications through ion doping and carbon coating are reviewed to highlight their roles in enhancing conductivity and stability. This article aims to provide ideas for developing high-performance LiMnPO4 cathode materials to affect LIBs' development positively. This article aims to provide ideas for developing high-performance LiMnPO4 cathode materials to influence LIBs' development positively.

Quenching method introduced oxygen defect type Zn2V2O7·2H2O for long-life aqueous zinc ion batteries

Cost-effective and environment-friendly aqueous zinc ion batteries (AZIBs) are ideal for emerging energy storage. Focusing on enhancing the rate performance and cycling stability of AZIBs, various metal oxides and compounds as cathode materials have drawn extensive attention. The development of high-performance AZIBs cathode materials requires concentrating on the Zn2+ intercalation strategy and exploring new materials more suitable for Zn2+ intercalation to ensure more stable Zn2+ storage. Additionally, a straightforward synthesis process considering economic effects and cost issues is essential. Herein, we introduce abundant oxygen vacancies on/near the surface of V2O5 by quenching at high temperatures to provide more insertion sites for Zn2+. Then, Zn2V2O7·2H2O with oxygen vacancies is synthesized by reacting V2O5 with ZnCl2 through stirring and subsequent hydrothermal treatment (named QH ZVO). QH ZVO has a tunnel-like structure for stable Zn2+ storage, combined with oxygen vacancy defects, enriches Zn2+ storage quantity. Density functional theory simulations show that the quenching induced oxygen vacancy narrows the energy band gap of QH ZVO and accelerates electron transfer. The maximum specific capacity reaches 78.34 mAh g−1 at 15 A g−1 with 74.47 % capacity retention after 15,000 cycles. This work offers a new approach for efficient zinc storage and enhances the electrochemical stability of AZIBs.

Nickel-mediated V4O7 as high-performance cathode material for aqueous Zn-ion batteries

Vanadium-based materials are currently favored by researchers due to their multi-structure, which can enhance the steric resistance and electrostatic repulsion during the (de)intercalation process of zinc ions. However, their low conductivity remains an inherent hindrance to their practical application. Therefore, finding a way to adjust the electronic structure of vanadium-based compounds is considered an effective strategy. Presently, we have designed a porous Ni-mediated V4O7, wherein the presence of oxygen defects and heterostructures in V4O7/NiO (Od-NVO-4) substantially improves the diffusion kinetics of ions/electrons and boosts the electrochemical performance. As anticipated, the Zn//V4O7/NiO battery exhibits a high specific capacity (348.6 mAh g−1 at 0.1 A g−1), favorable rate capability (323.8 mAh g−1 at 4 A g−1), and remarkable cycle stability (206.3 mAh g−1 at 2 A g−1 after 2000 cycles). Additionally, the underlying mechanism of electrochemical zinc storage is comprehensively described through electrochemical kinetic analysis and theoretical calculations. These results unambiguously reveal the intrinsic link between the surface/interface structure and electrochemical performance of the cathode, offering a valuable reference for designing high-performance electrode materials.

Ca/Li Synergetic-Doped Na0.67Ni0.33Mn0.67O2 to Realize P2-O2 Phase Transition Suppression for High-Performance Sodium-Ion Batteries.

P2-type layered transition metal oxide Na0.67Ni0.33Mn0.67O2 is considered as a promising cathode for advanced sodium-ion batteries due to its high theoretical specific capacity. However, the P2-type cathode suffers severe P2-O2 phase transition during cycling process, resulting unsatisfactory cyclic stability and rate capability. Herein, a Ca/Li co-doped P2-type Na0.62Ca0.05Ni0.33Mn0.57Li0.10O2 (NCNMLO) cathode material was synthesized through a simple sol-gel method. With the synergistic effect of Ca-doping at Na sites and Li substitution at transition metal (TM) sites, the cathode achieves an excellent electrochemical performance due to the inhibited P2-O2 phase transition and improved ion diffusion with Na+/vacancy disordering arrangement. The NCNMLO cathode exhibits a good cyclic stability with 70.8 % of capacity retention at 1 C after 200 cycles and excellent rate capability with 40.1 mAh g-1 at 20 C. The dual sites doping strategy provides an effective and simple approach for designing high-performance layered oxide cathode materials for sodium-ion batteries.

A donor-acceptor conjugated bipolar polymer with multielectron redox sites for long-cycle-life and high-rate aqueous zinc dual-ion batteries

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) have hugely latent advantages in large-scale energy storage due to its innate safety, reasonable price, and sustainability. However, most AZIB cathode materials suffer from short cycling life and poor rate performance. Herein, a bipolar donor-acceptor (D-A) conjugated microporous polymer (PTZ-BDTB), consisting of electron-withdrawing benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b’]dithiophene-4,8-dione (BDTB) units and electron-donating phenothiazine (PTZ) units, is developed as the cathode material of aqueous zinc dual-ion batteries (AZDIBs). The D-A type structure design could reduce the band gap, thus promoting electron transfer in the polymer framework. Therefore, the PTZ-BDTB cathode in a 30 mol/kg (m) ZnCl2 water-in-salt electrolyte exhibits a high reversible capacity of 202 mA h g−1 at 0.05 A g−1 with excellent rate performance (109 mA h g−1 at 15 A g−1), which is far superior to its counterpart polymers PPTZ and PB-BDTB. Impressively, PTZ-BDTB shows ultra-stable cycle performance with capacity retention ratios of 76.2% after 460 cycles at 0.05 A g−1 and 96% after 27000 cycles at 5 A g−1. PTZ-BDTB also exhibits a low self-discharge ability with capacity retention about 76.4% after resting the battery for 28 days. These results demonstrate that D-A type structural design is a promising strategy for constructing high performance cathode materials for AZDIBs.

Internal doping and surface coating: Mn / La-HCF @ Fe-HCF composites as high-performance cathode materials for sodium-ion batteries

Internal doping and surface coating: Mn / La-HCF @ Fe-HCF composites as high-performance cathode materials for sodium-ion batteries

Rational design of α-MnO2@TiO2 composites for high-performance zinc ions batteries

Aqueous zinc ions batteries (AZIBs) have attracted widespread interest due to their remarkable energy density, non-toxicity, environmental friendliness and low cost. However, the application of MnO2 cathode materials for AZIBs is limited owing to the dissolution of Mn2+, structural collapse and intrinsic poor conductivity. Herein, α-MnO2@TiO2 composites were synthesized via simple hydrothermal and calcination approaches. Some smaller TiO2 were coated on the MnO2 nanorods to form the protective layer. The TiO2 protective layer not only prevents the dissolution of Mn2+ and structural collapse of MnO2, but also enhances the conductivity of the material due to the presence of Ti3+ defects, which increased electrode materials wettability, specific surface area and diffusion rate of Zn2+. In addition, the coating TiO2 causes surface adsorbed oxygen and surface binding defects in α-MnO2@TiO2, and increases surface reactivity and electrochemically active sites, which provides abundant channels and available insertion electrochemically active sites for H+/Zn2+ transport. As a result, α-MnO2@TiO2–2 delivers a high specific capacity of 182.90 mAh g−1 at 1 A g−1 after 600 cycles and outstanding rate capacity of 127.91 mAh g−1 at 5 A g−1. This work provides an idea for exploring high-performance cathode materials for AZIBs.

Comparative investigation of composition, microstructure and property influences on electrocatalysis of two representative cathodes: BaCo0.4Fe0.4Zr0.1Y0.1O3-δ versus Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3-δ

BaCo0.4Fe0.4Zr0.1Y0.1O3-δ (BCFZY) and Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3-δ (BSCF) perovskites are two representative high-performance cathode materials for intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (IT-SOFCs). Here, symmetric cell tests demonstrate that polarization resistance values of BCFZY cathode are only 0.21–0.29 times those of BSCF cathode at 740–660 °C, and 0.21–0.26 times those of BSCF cathode at the oxygen partial pressures of 1.00–0.10 atm. Distribution of relaxation times (DRT) is applied to detect individual electrode processes overlapped in impedance spectra, which finds that the dominant processes of oxygen dissociation, subsequent species transfer and reduction on BCFZY cathode are superior to those of BSCF cathode. By temperature-programmed desorption of oxygen (O2-TPD), thermal expansion coefficient (TEC) measurements, scanning electron micrograph (SEM) and energy dispersive spectra measurements, the strong oxygen combination ability with higher activation energy of oxygen desorption (Ed = 84 kJ mol-1), peculiar surface state with evident nano-particle structure, more matchable TEC (19.0 × 10-6 K−1) and excellent interfacial connection with the electrolyte are observed on BCFZY cathode to account for its distinctive catalysis, as compared to BSCF cathode (Ed = 68 kJ mol-1, TEC = 24.2 × 10-6 K−1).

Delaying cyclization of polyacrylonitrile by boric acid for sulfurized poly(acrylonitrile) cathode materials

Sulfurized poly(acrylonitrile) (SPAN) has become one of the most promising cathode materials in rechargeable Lithium-Sulfur (Li-S) batteries due to their inhibited polysulfide dissolution, high sulfur utilization and excellent electrochemical performance via unique solid–solid conversion mechanism. However, the sulfur content of SPAN (<50 %) is still one of the significant reasons that restrict the electrochemical performance and practical applicability. In this paper, a small amount of boric acid (HBO) was introduced into the precursor of SPAN cathode materials easily before heat-treating, to increase the sulfur content and improve the electrochemical performance. Meanwhile, the results of first principles calculation suggested that the increase of sulfur content of SPAN was derived from the delayed cyclization of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) by HBO. We also discovered when the additive amount of HBO was 1.5 % of PAN mass, the SPAN cathode material possessed high sulfur content up to 54.24 wt%, and delivered prominent reversible electrochemical performances of 714 mAh/g at 0.2C and 734 mAh/g at 0.1C with high Coulombic efficiency. In summary, we proposed a simple and easy method to improve sulfur content and introduced a new strategy for the design of high-sulfur content and high-performance SPAN cathode materials.

Suppressing vacancies and crystal water of sodium manganese iron-based Prussian blue analogue by potassium doping for advanced sodium-ion batteries

Sodium manganese iron-based Prussian blue analogue (MnFe-PBAs) is regarded as potential cathode material for sodium-ion batteries due to its simple synthesis process, low production cost, and high theoretical capacity. Unfortunately, electrochemical performances of MnFe-PBAs are inevitably hindered owing to the crystal vacancies and crystal water produced from aqueous co-precipitation process. Herein, highly crystallized cubic potassium-doped sodium manganese iron-based Prussian blue analogue is synthesized by a modified co-precipitation method. By introducing a larger ionic radius potassium (K) to substitute the part of Na in the MnFe-PBAs, a coexistence composite of sodium and potassium phases is obtained with less crystal water and fewer vacancies compared with pure sodium phase compound, resulting that potassium-doped sodium manganese iron-based Prussian blue analogue (Na1.08K0.74Mn[Fe(CN)6]0.86⋅□0.14⋅1·.86H2O, NaKMHCF) can deliver high discharge specific capacity (129.3 mAh/g at 10 mA g−1), excellent rate performance (82.3 mAh/g at 1500 mA g−1) as well as high cycling stability (77.0 % capacity retention at 500 mA g−1 after the 500th cycle). Besides, the full cell, based on NaKMHCF as cathode material and sodium titanium phosphate (NTP) as anode material, confirms its potential as high-performance cathode material for SIBs.

Liner Nanostructure of Metal Boride as a Cathode Material for High-Performance and Flexible Solid-State Asymmetric Hybrid Battery Supercapacitors

Liner Nanostructure of Metal Boride as a Cathode Material for High-Performance and Flexible Solid-State Asymmetric Hybrid Battery Supercapacitors

Sustainable Sulfur-Carbon Hybrids for Efficient Sulfur Redox Conversions in Nanoconfined Spaces.

Nanoconfinement is a promising strategy in chemistry enabling increased reaction rates, enhanced selectivity, and stabilized reactive species. Sulfur's abundance and highly reversible two-electron transfer mechanism have fueled research on sulfur-based electrochemical energy storage. However, the formation of soluble polysulfides, poor reaction kinetics, and low sulfur utilization are current bottlenecks for broader practical application. Herein, a novel strategy is proposed to confine sulfur species in a nanostructured hybrid sulfur-carbon material. A microporous sulfur-rich carbon is produced from sustainable natural precursors via inverse vulcanization and condensation. The material exhibits a unique structure with sulfur anchored to the conductive carbon matrix and physically confined in ultra-micropores. The structure promotes Na+ ion transport through micropores and electron transport through the carbon matrix, while effectively immobilizing sulfur species in the nanoconfined environment, fostering a quasi-solid-state redox reaction with sodium. This translates to ≈99% utilization of the 2e- reduction of sulfur and the highest reported capacity for a room temperature Na-S electrochemical system, with high rate capability, coulombic efficiency, and long-term stability. This study offers an innovative approach toward understanding the key physicochemical properties of sulfurcarbon nanohybrid materials, enabling the development of high-performance cathode materials for room-temperature Na-S batteries with efficient sulfur utilization.