Macroporous carbon coatings through carbonization of emulsion-templated poly(dicyclopentadiene) on metal substrates

In this article, we demonstrate the fabrication of thin and macroporous carbon coatings that adhere to various metal substrates such as nickel- or aluminum-based foils or meshes. The coating process is a combination of emulsion-templating and the doctor-blade method, which allows to prepare up to 350 µm thick poly(dicyclopentadiene) membranes with a polyHIPE (polymerized high internal phase emulsions) architecture. Carbonization of these poly(dicyclopentadiene) membranes directly on the metal substrates resulted in up to 30-µm-thick foamy carbon coatings that retain the highly porous architecture and flexibility. Subsequently, carbon foam-coated Ni-foils were filled with elemental sulfur by a melt diffusion technique. A macroporous carbon coating supported sulfur loadings up to 65 wt%, obtaining cathodes for galvanostatic cycling experiments in Li–S cells. The latter revealed discharge capacities higher than 800 mA h ⁻¹ according to the sulfur mass. With our approach, the final assembly of the electrodes is greatly simplified because no binders or conductive fillers are required. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.].