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Improving the structural stability of Li-rich cathode materials via reservation of cations in the Li-slab for Li-ion batteries

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Abstract

High-capacity Li-rich cathode materials can significantly improve the energy density of lithium-ion batteries, which is the key limitation to miniaturization of electronic devices and further improvement of electrical-vehicle mileage. However, severe voltage decay hinders the further commercialization of these materials. Insights into the relationship between the inherent structural stability and external appearance of the voltage decay in high-energy Li-rich cathode materials are critical to solve this problem. Here, we demonstrate that structural evolution can be significantly inhibited by the intentional introduction of certain adventive cations (such as Ni2+) or by premeditated reservation of some of the original Li+ ions in the Li slab in the delithiated state. The voltage decay of Li-rich cathode materials over 100 cycles decreased from 500 to 90 or 40 mV upon introducing Ni2+ or retaining some Li+ ions in the Li slab, respectively. The cations in the Li slab can serve as stabilizers to reduce the repulsion between the two neighboring oxygen layers, leading to improved thermodynamic stability. Meanwhile, the cations also suppress transition metal ion migration into the Li slab, thereby inhibiting structural evolution and mitigating voltage decay. These findings provide insights into the origin of voltage decay in Li-rich cathode materials and set new guidelines for designing these materials for high-energy-density Li-ion batteries.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (No. 2016YFA0202500), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51225204 and 21127901), and the “Strategic Priority Research Program” of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. XDA09010000).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Nanostructure and Nanotechnology, CAS Research/Education Center for Excellence in Molecular Sciences, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China

    Ji-Lei Shi, Xu-Dong Zhang, Ya-Xia Yin, Yu-Guo Guo & Li-Jun Wan

  2. Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China

    Dong-Dong Xiao & Lin Gu

  3. School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Ji-Lei Shi, Xu-Dong Zhang & Yu-Guo Guo

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  1. Ji-Lei Shi
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  2. Dong-Dong Xiao
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  4. Ya-Xia Yin
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  5. Yu-Guo Guo
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Correspondence to Yu-Guo Guo, Lin Gu or Li-Jun Wan.

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Improving the structural stability of Li-rich cathode materials via reservation of cations in the Li-slab for Li-ion batteries

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Shi, JL., Xiao, DD., Zhang, XD. et al. Improving the structural stability of Li-rich cathode materials via reservation of cations in the Li-slab for Li-ion batteries. Nano Res. 10, 4201–4209 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-017-1489-3

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