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Title: First-Principles Study of Lithium Cobalt Spinel Oxides: Correlating Structure and Electrochemistry

Journal Article · · ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces

Embedding a lithiated cobalt oxide spinel (Li2Co2O4, or LiCoO2) component or a nickel-substituted Li2Co1-xNixO2 analogue in structurally integrated cathodes such as xLi2MnO3.(1-x)LiM'O2 (M' = Ni/Co/Mn) has been recently proposed as an approach to advance the performance of lithium-ion batteries. Here, we first revisit the phase stability and electrochemical performance of LiCoO2 synthesized at different temperatures using density functional theory calculations. Consistent with previous studies, we find that the occurrence of low- and high-temperature structures (i.e., cubic lithiated spinel LT-LiCoO2; or Li2Co2O4 (Fd$$\overline{3m}$$) vs trigonal-layered HT-LiCoO2 (R$$\overline{3m}$$), respectively) can be explained by a small difference in the free energy between these 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 26 two compounds. Additionally, the observed voltage profile of a Li/LiCoO2 cell for both cubic and trigonal phases of LiCoO2, as well as the migration barrier for lithium diffusion from an octahedral (Oh) site to a tetrahedral site (Td) in Fd$$\overline{3m}$$ LT-Li1-xCoO2, has been calculated to help understand the complex electrochemical charge/discharge processes. A search of LiCoxM1-xO2 lithiated spinel (M' = Ni or Mn) structures and compositions is conducted to extend the exploration of the chemical space of Li-Co-Mn-Ni-O electrode materials. We predict a new lithiated spinel material, LiNi0.8125Co0.1875O2 (Fd$$\overline{3m}$$), with a composition close to that of commercial, layered LiNi0.8Co0.05Al0.05O2, which may have the potential for exploitation in structurally integrated, layered spinel cathodes for next generation lithium-ion batteries.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC) (United States). Center for Electrical Energy Storage (CEES)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE); National Science Foundation (NSF); Dow Chemical Company; Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-06CH11357; OCI-1053575; AC02-05CH11231
OSTI ID:
1461501
Journal Information:
ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, Vol. 10, Issue 16; ISSN 1944-8244
Publisher:
American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 25 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (2)

New technique for elaboration and characterization of a high voltage spinel LiCo 2 O 4 cathode and theoretical investigation journal January 2020
A multiscale investigation elucidating the structural complexities and electrochemical properties of layered–layered composite cathode materials synthesized at low temperatures journal January 2020