Lithium-sulfur batteries can displace lithium-ion by delivering higher specific energy. Presently, however, the superior energy performance fades rapidly when the sulfur electrode is loaded to the required levels—5 to 10 mg cm⁻²— due to substantial volume change of lithiation/delithiation and the resultant stresses. Inspired by the classical approaches in particle agglomeration theories, we found an approach that places minimum amounts of a high-modulus binder between neighboring particles, leaving increased space for material expansion and ion diffusion. These expansion-tolerant electrodes with loadings up to 15 mg cm⁻² yield high gravimetric (>1200 mA·hour g⁻¹) and areal (19 mA·hour cm⁻²) capacities. The cells are stable for more than 200 cycles, unprecedented in such thick cathodes, with Coulombic efficiency above 99%.

The performance of electrode materials in lithium-ion (Li-ion), sodium-ion (Na-ion) and related batteries depends not only on their chemical composition but also on their microstructure. The choice of a synthesis method is therefore of paramount importance. Amongst the wide variety of synthesis or shaping routes reported for an ever-increasing panel of compositions, spray-drying stands out as a versatile tool offering demonstrated potential for up-scaling to industrial quantities. In this review, we provide an overview of the rapidly increasing literature including both spray-drying of solutions and spray-drying of suspensions. We focus, in particular, on the chemical aspects of the formulation of the solution/suspension to be spray-dried. We also consider the post-processing of the spray-dried precursors and the resulting morphologies of granules. The review references more than 300 publications in tables where entries are listed based on final compound composition, starting materials, sources of carbon etc.

A CO ₂ -sourced self-standing solid electrolyte membrane is prepared and evaluated for room temperature operating lithium batteries.