Tailoring WB morphology enables d-band centers to be highly active for high-performance lithium-sulfur battery

The d-band centers of catalysts have exhibited excellent performance in various reactions. Among them, the enhanced catalytic reaction is considered a crucial way to power dynamics and reduce the “shuttle” effect in polysulfide conversions of lithium-sulfur batteries. Here, we report two-dimensional-shaped tungsten borides (WB) nanosheets with d-band centers, where the d orbits of W atoms on the (001) facets show greatly promoting the electrocatalytic sulfur reduction reaction. As-prepared WB-based Li-S cells exhibit excellent electrochemical performance for Li-ion storage. Especially, it delivers superior capacities of 7.7 mAh/cm² under the 8.0 mg/cm² sulfur loading, which is far superior to most other electrode catalysts.