Recent Progress on Natural Clay Minerals for Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

Li-S batteries with high energy density have the potential to become a viable alternative to Li-ion batteries. However, Li-S batteries still face several challenges, including the shuttle effect, low conversion kinetics, and Li dendrite growth. Natural clay minerals with porous structures, abundant Lewis-acid sites, high mechanical modulus, and versatile structural regulation show great potential for improving the performance of Li-S batteries. However, so far, relevant reviews focusing on the applications of natural clay minerals in Li-S batteries are still missing. To fill the gap, this review first presents an overview of the crystal structures of several natural clay minerals, including 1D (halloysites, attapulgites, and sepiolite), 2D (montmorillonite and vermiculite), and 3D (diatomite) structures, providing a theoretical basis for the application of natural clay minerals in Li-S batteries. Subsequently, research advancements in the natural clay-based energy materials in Li-S batteries have been comprehensively reviewed. Finally, the perspectives concerning the development of natural clay minerals and their applications in Li-S batteries are provided. We hope this review can provide timely and comprehensive information on the correlation between the structure and function of natural clay minerals in Li-S batteries and offer guidance for material selection and structure optimization of natural clay-based energy materials.