Opening a New Horizon for the Facile Synthesis of Long-Life Ni-Rich Layered Cathode

The compositional partitioning of the Li[Ni x Co y Mn1-x-y ]O-2 layeredcathodes,wherein the unstable but capacity-maximizing Ni-enriched compartmentis encapsulated by a chemically protective Mn-rich shell, has beenproven to improve the cycling performance of Ni-rich cathodes. However,the input of excessive thermal energy during the cathode calcinationprocess can eliminate the advantageous features of the concentrationgradient (CG) design. Accordingly, it is crucial to determine theoptimal calcination conditions, e.g., temperature, and duration, andto precisely control these parameters. Herein, we propose a strategythat can effectively ameliorate the deterioration of cathodes resultingfrom excessive thermal energy input and remarkably improve their cyclingperformance. It was revealed that a trace amount of tungsten incorporationduring the cathode calcination can effectively mitigate the high-temperature-inducedcathode degeneration and maintain outstanding product quality overa wide range of temperatures. Thus, the proposed strategy opens newavenues for the facile synthesis of long-life Ni-rich CG cathodes.

Automated summary

The addition of a trace amount of tungsten during the calcination of the cathode material can effectively mitigate high-temperature-induced degradation and improve cycling performance.