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A Novel Ultrathin SiO Layer Endowing Significant Improvement of Interface Properties for Nickel‐Rich Cathode Materials in Lithium‐Ion Batteries
Author(s) -
Dai Hui,
Cao Haishang,
Du Fanghui,
Zhou Qun,
Adkins Jason,
Sun Pengpeng,
Hu Die,
Zheng Junwei
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
energy technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.91
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 2194-4296
pISSN - 2194-4288
DOI - 10.1002/ente.202000204
Subject(s) - materials science , lithium (medication) , electrolyte , calcination , chemical engineering , layer (electronics) , cathode , oxide , coating , nickel , surface modification , electrode , nanotechnology , chemistry , catalysis , organic chemistry , metallurgy , medicine , engineering , endocrinology
A molecular coating strategy is used to modify the surface of LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 with a monolayer, or a few layers, of [3‐(trimethoxysilyl)propyl]urea. Upon calcination of the material, an ultrathin SiO layer is formed on the surface of LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 . The modification of the ultrathin SiO layer results only in a slight decrease in the specific capacity of LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 (≈204 mAh g −1 at 0.1 C), however, the ultrathin SiO layer endows the material with excellent cycling stability and rate capability. The electrode with surface‐modified material can deliver 87.5% of the initial discharge capacity after 300 cycles at 1 C, whereas the corresponding capacity retention of the pristine counterpart is only 62.5%. Similarly, the capacity retentions for the modified material and pristine counterpart are 76.0% and 55.7% at 2 C, respectively, relative to the capacities at 0.1 C. The results are ascribed to the covalently bonded structure of the SiO layer efficiently alleviating the side reaction of the electrolytes and enhancing the kinetics of the charge transfer processes at the interface. This strategy would be also applicable to other metal oxide materials to optimize the performance for lithium‐ion batteries.