Technological development of lithium-ion battery cathode materials
Lithium manganese oxide cathode material
Lithium manganese oxide is one of the earliest studied cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries and is one of the most promising cathode materials for power lithium batteries. Its applications are mainly concentrated in the consumer battery market, but it also has some applications in the field of power lithium batteries. It is predicted that the proportion of lithium manganese oxide in cathode materials will continue to increase in the future.
Lithium iron phosphate cathode material
my country's lithium iron phosphate industrialization development is basically in sync with the international stage. Currently, the cost of some domestic products is lower than that of similar foreign products. The gap in performance and unit output is not insurmountable. With the continuous improvement of lithium iron phosphate production technology, its market prospects remain promising for the industry.
Lithium cobalt oxide cathode material
Since the commercialization of lithium-ion batteries, lithium cobalt oxide has been the mainstream cathode material. However, surface modification techniques can only achieve incomplete changes to surface properties, making their feasibility in addressing the crystal structure instability of lithium cobalt oxide under high voltage questionable. Therefore, lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide is more advantageous than lithium cobalt oxide in further improving the reversible specific capacity of the material by increasing the charging voltage.
Technological development of lithium-ion battery anode materials
Graphite anode material
Graphite has become the mainstream commercial lithium-ion anode material due to its advantages such as high electronic conductivity, large lithium-ion diffusion coefficient, small volume change before and after lithium intercalation, high lithium intercalation capacity and low lithium intercalation potential.
However, due to the inherent structural characteristics of graphite, the development of graphite anode materials has encountered a bottleneck. If the capacity has reached its limit, it cannot meet the continuous high-current discharge capability required by large-scale power lithium batteries. Therefore, the industry has begun to turn its attention to graphite-based materials.
Silicon-based anode materials
Silicon is a semiconductor material with low electrical conductivity. During electrochemical cycling, the insertion and extraction of lithium ions cause the material volume to expand and contract by more than 300%. The resulting mechanical forces cause the material to gradually pulverize, leading to structural collapse. Ultimately, this causes the electrode active material to detach from the current collector, losing electrical contact and significantly reducing the battery's cycle performance.
Compared to traditional graphite anodes, silicon boasts an ultra-high theoretical specific capacity and a lower lithium depletion potential. Furthermore, silicon's voltage plateau is slightly higher than graphite's, making it less prone to surface lithium deposition during charging and resulting in better safety performance. Silicon has become one of the most promising options for upgrading carbon-based anodes in lithium-ion batteries.
Lithium titanate anode material
Compared to carbon anode materials, lithium titanate has a higher potential, and lithium titanate-ion batteries have an ultra-long cycle life, outstanding safety, excellent power characteristics, and good economic efficiency. These characteristics will be the important cornerstones for the current rise of the large-scale lithium battery energy storage industry.
Research on lithium titanate battery technology is booming both domestically and internationally. Its industrial chain can be divided into lithium titanate material preparation, lithium titanate battery production, and the integration of lithium titanate battery systems, as well as their application in the electric vehicle and energy storage markets.
