biostudies-literatureUnknown5(1)Klimpel MThe search for cost-effective stationary energy storage systems has led to a surge of reports on novel post-Li-ion batteries composed entirely of earth-abundant chemical elements. Among the plethora of contenders in the 'beyond lithium' domain, the aluminum-sulfur (Al-S) batteries have attracted considerable attention in recent years due to their low cost and high theoretical volumetric and gravimetric energy densities (3177 Wh L^-1 and 1392 Wh kg^-1). In this work, we offer an overview of historical and present research pursuits in the development of Al-S batteries with particular emphasis on their fundamental problem-the dissolution of polysulfides. We examine both experimental and computational approaches to tailor the chemical interactions between the sulfur host maCommunications chemistry77https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC9814864biostudies-literatureAdvances and challenges of aluminum-sulfur batteries.PMC9814864Kravchyk KVKovalenko MVKlimpel MfalseAdvances and challenges of aluminum-sulfur batteries.The search for cost-effective stationary energy storage systems has led to a surge of reports on novel post-Li-ion batteries composed entirely of earth-abundant chemical elements. Among the plethora of contenders in the 'beyond lithium' domain, the aluminum-sulfur (Al-S) batteries have attracted considerable attention in recent years due to their low cost and high theoretical volumetric and gravimetric energy densities (3177 Wh L^-1 and 1392 Wh kg^-1). In this work, we offer an overview of historical and present research pursuits in the development of Al-S batteries with particular emphasis on their fundamental problem-the dissolution of polysulfides. We examine both experimental and computational approaches to tailor the chemical interactions between the sulfur host ma2022-01-01T00:00:00Z2022 Jul2025-04-29T10:48:06.155Z2025-04-06T19:41:52.367ZS-EPMC98148643669801710.1038/s42004-022-00693-5