Synergistic electrochemical catalysis by high-entropy metal phosphide in lithium–sulfur batteries

The shuttle effect and sluggish redox kinetics of polysulfides have hindered the development of lithium–sulfur batteries (LSBs) as premier energy storage devices. To address these issues, a high-entropy metal phosphide (NiCoMnFeCrP) was synthesized using the sol–gel method. NiCoMnFeCrP, with its rich metal species, exhibits strong synergistic effects and provides numerous catalytic active sites for the conversion of polysulfides. These active sites, possessing significant polarity, can bond with polysulfides. In situ ultraviolet–visible were conducted to monitor the dynamic changes in species and concentrations of polysulfides, validating the ability of NiCoMnFeCrP to facilitate the conversion of polysulfides. The batteries with the NiCoMnFeCrP catalyst as functional separators exhibited minimal capacity decay rates of 0.04 % and 0.23 % after 100 cycles at 0 °C and 60 °C, respectively. This indicates that the NiCoMnFeCrP catalyst possesses good thermal stability. Meanwhile, its area capacity can reach 4.78 mAh cm−2 at a high sulfur load of 4.54 mg cm−2. In conclusion, NiCoMnFeCrP achieves the objective of mitigating the shuttle effect and accelerating the kinetics of the redox reaction, thereby facilitating the commercialization of LSBs.