A novel hierarchical precursor of densely integrated hydroxide nanoflakes on oxide microspheres toward high-performance layered Ni-rich cathode for lithium ion batteriesElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Chemical composition and particle size distribution of the precursor and cathode samples, SEM and XRD of the Ni0.8Co0.1Mn0.1Ox and Ni0.8Co0.1Mn0.1(OH)2 precursors, the cycle performance of the LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 cathodes prepared from the Ni0.8Co0.1Mn0.1Ox and Ni0.8Co0.1Mn0.1

• Main Authors: Li, Yan, Li, Xinhai, Wang, Zhixing, Guo, Huajun, Li, Tao, Meng, Kui, Wang, Jiexi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2052-1537
• DOI: 10.1039/c8qm00326b

Herein, a novel hierarchical precursor of Ni 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O x @Ni 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 (OH) 2 is proposed for the first time, which was synthesized by densely integrating co-precipitated Ni 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 (OH) 2 nanoflakes onto spray-pyrolyzed Ni 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O x microspheres. The co-precipitated hydroxide layer can prevent the Ni 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O x microspheres from fragmenting during the sintering process, thus yielding uniform LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 spheres with a hollow interior morphology. Strikingly, the obtained spherical LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 cathode exhibits improved tap density and initial coulombic efficiency, as well as excellent cycling stability and superior rate capability. Discharge capacities of 169 mA h g −1 after 300 cycles at 1C (180 mA g −1 ) of between 2.8 and 4.3 V are consistently obtained, corresponding to 90.5% capacity retention. Significantly, it is strongly envisioned that this novel hierarchical structure design concept holds great promise for the architectural construction of other energy storage materials. LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 cathode derived from a novel Ni 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O x @Ni 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 (OH) 2 hierarchical precursor exhibits improved tap density and initial coulombic efficiency, as well as excellent cycling stability and superior rate capability.