Accelerated synthesis of nickel-rich cathode materials using flame-assisted spray pyrolysis
Methods of synthesis of nickel-rich cathode materials can include preheating droplets, decomposing the droplets in a burner, collecting solid particles, and calcinating the solid particles.
1 . A method of synthesis of a nickel-rich cathode material comprising:
i) preparing a precursor solution by dissolving lithium nitrate, nickel nitrate, manganese nitrate, and cobalt nitrate in water;
ii) aerosolizing the precursor solution in a stream of air using an ultrasonic sprayer to form droplets;
iii) preheating the droplets;
iv) generating a flame in a burner;
v) decomposing the droplets by passing through the burner;
vi) depositing solid particles on a powder collector; and
vii) calcinating the solid particles in a furnace in the presence of an oxidizing agent for up to 20 minutes at about 875° C.
2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising adding excess LiNO 3 to the precursor solution.
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the precursor solution includes urea.
4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the nickel-rich cathode material comprises lithium-nickel-cobalt-manganese oxide (NCM).
5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the nickel nitrate of the precursor solution includes nickel nitrate hexahydrate (Ni(NO 3 ) 2 ·6H 2 O).
6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the manganese nitrate of the precursor solution includes manganese nitrate tetrahydrate (Mn(NO 3 ) 2 ·4H 2 O).
7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the cobalt nitrate of the precursor solution includes cobalt nitrate hexahydrate (Co(NO 3 ) 2 ·6H 2 O).
8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the droplets are passed through the co-flow burner at a flow rate of about 10 L/min.
9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the nickel-rich cathode material comprises an ordered layered structure.
10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the nickel-rich cathode material comprises LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 (NCM811) or LiNi 0.6 Co 0.2 Mn 0.2 O 2 (NCM822).
11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the nickel-rich cathode material has a discharge capacity of about 198.3 mAh/g (1st cycle at 0.1 C).
12 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the nickel-rich cathode material has a capacity retention ratio of about 63.15% after 50 cycles at 1 C.
13 . The method of claim 1 , comprising a liquid-feed flame assisted spray pyrolysis (FASP) method.
14 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the method is a continuous-flow process.
15 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the ultrasonic sprayer is a 1.7 MHz ultrasonic sprayer.
16 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the preheating of the aerosolized droplets comprises heating by passage through two low-temperature preheating sections.
17 . The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing the solid particles on a powder collector comprises depositing the solid particles on a glass-fiber filter.
18 . A method of synthesis of a nickel-rich cathode material comprising:
i) forming droplets of a precursor solution including a nickel salt in a stream of air;
ii) preheating the droplets;
iii) generating a flame in a burner;
iv) decomposing the droplets by passing through the burner;
v) collecting solid particles on a powder collector; and
vi) calcinating the solid particles in a furnace in the presence of an oxidizing agent for up to 20 minutes at about 875°C.
19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein the precursor solution includes urea.
20 . The method of claim 18 , wherein the nickel-rich cathode material comprises lithium-nickel-cobalt-manganese oxide (NCM).
21 . The method of claim 18 , wherein the droplets are passed through a preheating zone at a flow rate of between 5 L/min and 20 L/min.
22 . The method of claim 21 , wherein the droplets are passed through the preheating zone at a flow rate of about 10 L/min.
23 . The method of claim 18 , wherein preheating the droplets includes tuning the morphology and electrochemical performance of the nickel-rich cathode material by adjusting a preheating temperature and preheating time.
24 . The method of claim 18 , wherein preheating the droplets includes exposing the droplets to a temperature of 125° C. to 325°C.