KEIDS4-1664
Surface-Enhanced Ultra High-Nickel Layered Cathodes
Topic
IDS4. Advanced Battery Materials and Interface Engineering for Next-Generation Batteries (Sponsored by EcoPro BM)
When and Where
Sep 29, 2026
11:15 - 11:40
Room 202
Session Chairs
Hongkyung LEE
Presenter(s)
Jae Chul Kim (Stevens Institute of Technology)
Co-Author(s)
Abstract
Energy-dense nickel (Ni)-rich layered oxide cathodes can enable lithium (Li)-ion batteries to power electric vehicles (EVs) for longer distance. Employing Ni-rich cathodes to integrate battery cells, however, faces fundamental challenges in stabilizing surface structures at high state of charge due to irreversible phase transformations and substantial crack propagation. To address this challenge, strategies such as cation doping, surface passivation, and/or transition metal composition gradient have proven effective for suppressing the surface degradation of the Ni-rich layered oxides at high voltage.
To push the limit of Ni content in the layered oxide for reversible lithium intercalation, we present a reactive formation of a thin cation-disordered rocksalt oxide (DRX) layer between the interfaces of layered oxide primary particles and the surface of their secondary particles. Our materials design approach hinges on controlling spatial distribution of cations for diffusion-limited nucleation of DRX and layered oxide phases. Extensive electron microscopy investigation confirmed uniform and conformal formation of DRX phases on the Ni-rich layered oxide particles. This interface-tailored Ni-rich cathode outperforms the pristine layered oxide cathode, demonstrating much improved high-voltage stability and capacity retention. We found that the overall synthesis involving DRX phases can promote protective passivation and dense packing of the primary particles, effectively suppressing oxygen loss and crack propagation at high state of charge.
To push the limit of Ni content in the layered oxide for reversible lithium intercalation, we present a reactive formation of a thin cation-disordered rocksalt oxide (DRX) layer between the interfaces of layered oxide primary particles and the surface of their secondary particles. Our materials design approach hinges on controlling spatial distribution of cations for diffusion-limited nucleation of DRX and layered oxide phases. Extensive electron microscopy investigation confirmed uniform and conformal formation of DRX phases on the Ni-rich layered oxide particles. This interface-tailored Ni-rich cathode outperforms the pristine layered oxide cathode, demonstrating much improved high-voltage stability and capacity retention. We found that the overall synthesis involving DRX phases can promote protective passivation and dense packing of the primary particles, effectively suppressing oxygen loss and crack propagation at high state of charge.
