Amorphous molybdenum sulfide electrodes for non-aqueous electrochemical cells.

A series of amorphous molybdenum sulfides, MoS(2), Mo(2)S(5) and MoS(3), have been investigated as candidate non-aqueous storage battery electrodes. The molybdenum sulfides were prepared by a low temperature non-aqueous precipitation technique; classical MoS(3) was also prepared from ammonium tetrathiomolybdate (NH(4))(2)MoS(4)) by both thermal decomposition and acidic precipitation from an aqueous solution. Mechanically stable electrodes were fabricated by spraying a mixture of active material, an inert polymer binder, and carbon black onto aluminum foil. Electrochemical performance is dependent on the stoichiometry of the molybdenum sulfide, as well as the details of the cycling regime. Amorphous molybdenum trisulfide (aMoS(3) shows the highest energy density and longest cycle life of the three compounds. Four equivalents are discharged in the first cycle; three equivalents can be recharged and cycled at an average voltage of about 2.0V in excess of 200 cycles to 50% of initial recharge capacity.