Lithium sulfide

Lithium sulfide (Li₂S) is a high-purity, inorganic compound that appears as a white to yellowish crystalline powder. It has a molecular weight of 45.95 g/mol and a density of 1.66 g/cm³. Lithium sulfide is known for its strong nucleophilic properties and its ability to react readily with water to produce lithium hydroxide and hydrogen sulfide gas. It is also soluble in certain organic solvents, such as pyridine and dimethyl sulfoxide. Lithium sulfide crystallizes in an antifluorite structure and melts in the temperature range of 900-975°C. Our high-purity material (99.995% trace metals) is specifically formulated for low sodium content, with less than 35 ppm of sodium metal. Additionally, the material is passed through a 100 mesh sieve, ensuring that most particles are less than 150 microns in size.




Lithium Sulfide is a key material in advanced lithium-sulfur batteries, offering high energy density and low cost. Its use supports greener technologies by enabling lighter, longer-lasting batteries with reduced reliance on scarce metals, promoting sustainable and environmentally friendly energy storage solutions. Click here for more information.

High-purity lithium sulfide is primarily used as a precursor in the synthesis of other lithium compounds. In chemical manufacturing, it acts as a precursor for lithium hydride, lithium borohydride, lithium amide, lithium thioacetate, lithium tetrafluoroborate, and others. In the battery industry, our battery grade lithium sulfide is used as a precursor to synthesize sulfide-based solid electrolytes like Li₃PS₄ ([https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/US/en/product/aldrich/916374]), Li₆PS₅Cl ([https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/US/en/product/aldrich/916137]), and Li₁₀SnP₂S₁₂ ([https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/US/en/product/aldrich/915114]). Lithium sulfide also serves as a cathode material in lithium-sulfur batteries, offering a theoretical capacity of up to 1166 mAh/g, nearly four times that of lithium cobalt oxide. This makes it an attractive candidate for next-generation battery technologies. Additionally, lithium sulfide is valuable in the semiconductor industry for the production of thin-film transistors (TFTs) and other electronic devices, particularly lithium sulfide-phosphorus oxide (Li₂S-P₂O₅) TFTs.