Patent ID: 7189477

Claim:
An electrochemical cell comprising; (a) an anode comprising lithium; (b) a cathode comprising an electroactive sulfur-containing material; and (c) a non-aqueous electrolyte interposed between the anode and the cathode, the electrolyte comprising: (i) one or more nonaqueous oxygen-containing solvents selected from the group consisting of acyclic ethers, cyclic ethers, polyethers, and sulfones; and (ii) one or more lithium salts, wherein at least one of the one or more lithium salts is selected from the group consisting of LiBr, LiI, LiSCN, LiCF 3 SO 3 , LiN(CF 3 SO 2 ) 2 , and LiC(CF 3 SO 2 ) 3 ; wherein, in the fully charged state of the cell, the concentration of the one or more lithium sats is less than 0.3 M and wherein the cell delivers at a discharge rate of from C/5 to 5 C, greater than 35% of the theoretical discharge capacity of the electroactive sulfur-containing material at temperatures between +25 ° C. to −20 ° C.