Granted Patent
B2
US 12,255,308 · App. 17/430,594 · Granted Mar 18, 2025
Sulfurized-carbon cathode with conductive carbon framework
Inventors:
Rodrigo Villegas Salvatierra (Houston, TX); Tuo Wang (Houston, TX); Abdul-Rahman Olabode Raji (Houston, TX)
Assignee:
Zeta Energy LLC
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Abstract
A cathode active surface includes a conductive framework of tangled nanofibers with lumps of amorphous carbon-sulfur distributed within them. The amorphous carbon-sulfur lumps are of carbon bonded to sulfur via carbon-sulfur chemical bonds and to the nanofibers via chemical bonds. The strength of the chemical bonds secures sulfur atoms within electrode to suppress the formation of undesirable polysulfides when in contact with an electrolyte. The tangled nanofibers bind the amorphous carbon-sulfur lumps and enhance thermal and electrical conductivities.
Claims (26)
1. An electrode comprising:
a conductive framework of tangled nanofibers; and
amorphous carbon-sulfur distributed within the tangled nanofibers, the amorphous carbon-sulfur including carbon bonded to sulfur via carbon-sulfur chemical bonds and to the nanofibers via chemical bonds;
wherein the amorphous carbon-sulfur contains sp2 aromatic carbon clusters having an average maximum dimension of less than 20 nm dispersed within a matrix of sp3 carbon atoms.
2. The electrode of claim 1 , wherein the conductive framework and the amorphous carbon-sulfur comprise less than 10 wt % oxygen.
3. The electrode of claim 1 , wherein the conductive framework and the amorphous carbon-sulfur comprise more than 30 wt % sulfur.
4. The electrode of claim 1 , wherein the conductive framework and the amorphous carbon-sulfur comprise about 40 wt % sulfur.
5. The electrode of claim 1 wherein the conductive framework and the amorphous carbon-sulfur comprise between 30 wt % and 80 wt % sulfur.
6. The electrode of claim 1 , wherein the amorphous carbon-sulfur includes sp2 carbon atoms and sp3 carbon atoms, and wherein the ratio of sp2 carbon atoms to sp3 carbon atoms is 50-90 at. % to 50-10 at. %.
7. The electrode of claim 6 , wherein the amorphous carbon-sulfur includes hydrogen, and wherein the hydrogen is 5-20 at. %.
8. The electrode of claim 1 , at least one of the conductive framework and amorphous carbon-sulfur comprising a dopant.
9. The electrode of claim 1 , further comprising sulfur bonded to an atom other than carbon.
10. The electrode of claim 1 , further comprising free sulfur not bonded to the carbon, the free sulfur less than 20 wt % of a total of the sulfur bonded to the carbon and the free sulfur.
11. The electrode of claim 1 , the amorphous carbon-sulfur comprising aromatic rings.
12. The electrode of claim 11 , wherein the aromatic rings include monocyclic rings.
13. The electrode of claim 11 , wherein the aromatic rings include heterocyclic rings.
14. The electrode of claim 13 , wherein the heterocyclic rings comprise at least one of oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfur.
15. The electrode of claim 1 , wherein the tangled nanofibers include at least one of nanotubes, nanoribbons, graphene, and carbon fibers.
16. The electrode of claim 15 , wherein the amorphous carbon-sulfur is bonded to the nanofibers predominantly via covalent bonds.
17. The electrode of claim 1 , wherein the tangled nanofibers include at least one of aluminum nanofibers and nickel nanofibers.
18. A method for producing the electrode of claim 1 , the method comprising:
combining nanofibers with sulfur and a polymer to produce an agglomerated powder of the nanofibers, the sulfur, and the polymer;
mixing the agglomerated powder to heat the agglomerated powder to a temperature of between 40° C. and 90° C. to crosslink the polymer with the nanofibers to create a conductive carbon framework in a crosslinked, hardened mixture of the nanofibers, the sulfur, and the polymer; and
heating the hardened mixture of the nanofibers, the sulfur, and the polymer to pyrolyze the polymer and chemically bond carbon from the pyrolyzed polymer to the nanofibers and the sulfur.
19. The method of claim 18 , wherein heating the hardened mixture of nanofibers, sulfur, and the polymer to pyrolyze the polymer brings the mixture above a glass-transition temperature of the hardened mixture.
20. The method of claim 18 , wherein the sulfur is mixed as a vapor.
Assignments (2)
MERGER AND CHANGE OF NAME
Recorded Aug 30, 2022
From: ZETA ENERGY LLC; ZETA ENERGY CORP
To: ZETA ENERGY CORP
Reel/Frame 061357/0493 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST
Recorded Mar 16, 2022
From: RAJI, ABDUL-RAHMAN OLABODE; SALVATIERRA, RODRIGO VILLEGAS; WANG, TUO
To: ZETA ENERGY LLC
Reel/Frame 059283/0419 →
Continuity (4)
Provisional Application
63000423
· Mar 26, 2020
Provisional Application
63133745
· Jan 4, 2021
Provisional Application
63133752
· Jan 4, 2021
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