Dual-component LixTiO2@silica functional coating in one layer for performance enhanced LiNi0.6Co0.2Mn0.2O2 cathode.

Abstract Surface modification is an effective strategy to address the critical issues of Ni-rich LiNi 1-x-y Co x Mn y O 2 (NCM) cathode material, including fast energy loss and stability in lithium ion battery. However, both single/double layers coating strategies suffer many fatal drawbacks, such as functional unitary or poor components contacting. Herein, we present a dual-component in one coating layer strategy, which composed of Li x TiO 2 nano-particles embedding in amorphous silica (LTSO) through a facile method. The coating material could not only be used as a physical protective layer to enhance the stability of NCM cathode, but also improve the ion diffusion kinetics with the contribution from the coating components. Thus, the battery performance was significantly enhanced. This dual-component coating strategy is novel, effective, simple and scalable, which could be extended and applied to other practical Ni-rich material modification designs. Graphical abstract fx1 Highlights • Dual-component Li x TiO 2 @silica in one coating layer was successfully built onto NCM materials. • The two coating components can be well combined and play their respective roles. • The coating could act as a protective layer to enhance the stability of NCM cathode. • The coating layer could improve the ion diffusion kinetics and thus boost the rate capability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]