A first principle method, based on the density functional theory, was used to investigate the average voltage of lithiation/delithiation for Li-ion battery materials across 7 categories and 18 series, including LiMO 2 , LiMn 2 O 4 , LiMPO 4 , Li 2 MSiO 4 and graphite. The average voltage of lithiation/delithiation in the relevant electrode materials was obtained by comparing the total-energy difference, before and after an electrochemical reaction. The calculated values were in good agreement with experimental data. The systematic difference between the simulated and experimental values could be explained in terms of the binding energy on the surface of the lithium electrode. This type of calculation method could be applied as an easy and effective tool for predicting the potential performance of new lithiation/delithiation materials.
xLi2MnO3·(1-x)Li(Ni1/3Co1/3Mn1/3)O2 (x=0.25, 0.40, 0.55) compounds were prepared by low-heating solid state reaction. In the voltage range of 2.70-4.35 V, the discharge capacity of the electrode decreased with the increase of x, with a better cyclability. However, when cycled between 2.7 and 4.6 V, the cathodes delivered much larger capacities and their capacities increased with the introduction of Li2MnO3. Moreover, it was found that the discharge capacity gradually increased with the cycle number. The reason for this phenomenon was discussed. It was found that the relatively low cut-off potential made the activation of the Li2MnO3 component in the compound a gradual process, which caused the increasing capacity.
Lithium-excess manganese layered oxides, which are commonly described in chemical formula 0.5Li2MnO3 ·0.5LiMn0.5Ni0.5O2 , were prepared by low-heating solid state reaction. The reaction mechanisms of synthesizing precursors, the decomposition mechanism, and intermediate materials in calcination were investigated by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The major diffraction patterns of 0.5Li2MnO3 ·0.5LiMn0.5Ni0.5O2 powder calcinated at 720°C for 15 h are indexed to the hexagonal structure with a space group of R 3m , and the clear splits of doublets at (006)/(102) and (108)/(110) indicate that the sample adopts a well-layered structure. FESEM images show that the size of the agglomerated particles of the sample ranges from 100 to 300 nm.
