Synthesized K₂O·11Al₂O₃ as sagger matrix for the preparation of Li‐ion battery cathode materials at high temperatures

Abstract

The ternary Li-ion battery cathode materials, for example, Li(Ni x Co y Mn z )O 2 (LNCM) are attractive candidates to be used in high-energy density cell design due to the large specific capacity and high average voltage. [1][2][3] LNCM materials are generally manufactured on an industrial scale through solid-state reactions at elevated temperatures using the Li-, Mn-, Co-, and Mn-bearing as raw material precursors. To ensure the calcination proceeds consecutively at high temperatures, the LNCM precursors were normally loaded in refractory saggers prepared with corundum (Al 2 O 3 ),However, it has been reported in previous work via post-mortem analyses and laboratory-scale tests that the conventional refractory components in refractory sagger matrix can be severely corroded by LNCM materials at elevated temperatures. [5][6][7][8] These refractory compounds are preferentially attacked by Li 2 O from LNCM materials/precursors, forming Li 2 O-bearing phases, that is, LiAlSiO 4 , LiAlSi 2 O 6 , and LiAlO 2 with volume expansions. As a result, parallel cracks along the refractory/LCNM materials interfaces were generated, leading to the spalling of corroded refractory materials