Novel construction of nanostructured carbon materials as sulfur hosts for advanced lithium-sulfur batteries

Lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs) are among the most promising next generation electrochemical energy storage systems due to their ultrahigh energy density, which has attracted enormous attentions. Nevertheless, the development and application of LSBs are still subject to some major technical obstacles such as the insulating nature of sulfur, the shuttle effect of intermediate polysulfides, and the drastic volume expansion. To overcome these challenges, various strategies have been employed to promote the performance of LSBs. This review focuses on summarizing the major development of novel nanostructured carbon hosts for advanced LSBs. The carbon nanotubes, graphene, and carbon spheres are introduced to improve our understanding of the morphology effects on LSBs. The heterogeneous atom-doping, unique hollow structures are summarized to investigate the chemical bonding effects during the charge/discharge process. The organic framework derived carbon structures are discussed to inspire us to find novel routes to enhance the performance of LSBs. Finally, the conclusions and prospects of nanostructured carbon in LSBs are proposed, while the challenges in the further development of LSBs are also discussed.