Development of microstrain in aged lithium transition metal oxides.

Cathode materials with high energy density for lithium-ion batteries are highly desired in emerging applications in automobiles and stationary energy storage for the grid. Lithium transition metal oxide with concentration gradient of metal elements inside single particles was investigated as a promising high-energy-density cathode material. Electrochemical characterization demonstrated that a full cell with this cathode can be continuously operated for 2500 cycles with a capacity retention of 83.3%. Electron microscopy and high-resolution X-ray diffraction were employed to investigate the structural change of the cathode material after this extensive electrochemical testing. It was found that microstrain developed during the continuous charge/discharge cycling, resulting in cracking of nanoplates. This finding suggests that the performance of the cathode material can be further improved by optimizing the concentration gradient to minimize the microstrain and to reduce the lattice mismatch during cycling.

Progress in High-Capacity Core-Shell Cathode Materials for Rechargeable Lithium Batteries.

High-energy-density rechargeable batteries are needed to fulfill various demands such as self-monitoring analysis and reporting technology (SMART) devices, energy storage systems, and (hybrid) electric vehicles. As a result, high-energy electrode materials enabling a long cycle life and reliable safety need to be developed. To ensure these requirements, new material chemistries can be derived from combinations of at least two compounds in a secondary particle with varying chemical composition and primary particle morphologies having a core-shell structure and spherical cathode-active materials, specifically a nanoparticle core and shell, nanoparticle core and nanorod shell, and nanorod core and shell. To this end, several layer core-shell cathode materials were developed to ensure high capacity, reliability, and safety.