Regulating the Sulfur Reduction Pathways with Fe ₂ Mo ₃ O ₈ /NC Electrocatalyst

Abstract The practical application of lithium‐sulfur (Li‐S) batteries is hindered by the shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides and slow redox kinetics during the sulfur reduction reactions. Electrocatalysis has been widely employed to address these issues. However, the impact of electrocatalysts on the sulfur reduction reaction pathways and intermediate products has not been fully explored. In this work, a bimetallic oxide Fe ₂ Mo ₃ O ₈ is prepared and embedded in C ₃ N ₄ ‐derived nitrogen‐doped carbon (Fe ₂ Mo ₃ O ₈ /NC) as an electrocatalyst for Li‐S batteries. This catalyst attached on the polypropylene separator promotes the generation and consumption of Li ₂ S ₄ , effectively mitigating the polysulfide shuttle effect and improving output potential. Consequently, Li‐S batteries with Fe ₂ Mo ₃ O ₈ /NC demonstrated exceptional rate performance across various current densities along with impressive cycling stability. This study highlights the role of Fe ₂ Mo ₃ O ₈ in optimizing the sulfur reduction reaction process and offers insights into designing advanced electrocatalysts for Li‐S batteries.