Mixing device for preparing lithium composite transition metal oxide, lithium composite transition metal oxide prepared using the same, and method of preparing lithium composite transition metal oxide

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10236503-B2
Application number	US-201414648038-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 2, 2014
Priority date	Jan 3, 2013
Publication date	Mar 19, 2019
Grant date	Mar 19, 2019

Abstract

A device for preparing a lithium composite transition metal oxide includes first and second mixers continuously arranged in a direction in which a fluid proceeds, wherein the first mixer has a closed structure including a hollow fixed cylinder, a rotating cylinder having the same axis as that of the hollow fixed cylinder and having an outer diameter that is smaller than an inner diameter of the fixed cylinder, an electric motor to generate power for rotation of the rotating cylinder, a rotation reaction space, as a separation space between the hollow fixed cylinder and the rotating cylinder, in which ring-shaped vortex pairs periodically arranged along a rotating shaft and rotating in opposite directions are formed, first inlets through which raw materials are introduced into the rotation reaction space, and a first outlet to discharge a reaction fluid formed from the rotation reaction space.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for preparing a lithium composite transition metal oxide for lithium secondary batteries, comprising:
introducing reactants into a first mixer and mixing the reactants to form a reaction fluid in the form of a transition metal hydroxide, the reactants including raw materials and an alkalifying agent, the raw materials being introduced into a rotation reaction space of the first mixer through first inlets, wherein the first mixer has a closed structure comprising:
a hollow fixed cylinder;
a rotating cylinder positioned within the hollow fixed cylinder and having a rotational axis that is coincident with the central axis of the hollow fixed cylinder, the rotating cylinder having an outer diameter that is smaller than an inner diameter of the fixed cylinder; and
an electric motor to generate power for rotation of the rotating cylinder;
wherein the rotation reaction space is defined by a separation space between the hollow fixed cylinder and the rotating cylinder

forming ring-shaped vortex pairs periodically arranged along the rotational axis and rotating in opposite directions;
discharging the reaction fluid formed in the rotation reaction space from a first outlet of the first mixer and into a second mixer; and
mixing the reaction fluid with supercritical or subcritical water in the second mixer to synthesize a lithium composite transition metal oxide.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein a ratio of a distance between the fixed cylinder and the rotating cylinder to an outer radius of the rotating cylinder of the first mixer is greater than 0.05 to less than 0.4.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the fluid has a kinematic viscosity of 0.4 cP to 400 cP and a device including the first and second mixers has a power consumption per unit mass of 0.05 W/kg to 100 W/kg.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the vortex pairs formed in the first mixer have a critical Reynolds number of 300 or more.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the first inlets comprise at least two inlets.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the second mixer comprises:
a hollow case;
second inlets through which the reaction fluid produced in the first mixer and the supercritical or subcritical water are introduced into the hollow case; and
a second outlet to discharge the lithium composite transition metal oxide prepared in the second mixer.

7. The method according to claim 6 , wherein the second inlets to introduce supercritical or subcritical water are formed at opposite sides of an inlet to introduce the reaction fluid into the second mixer.

8. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
drying the lithium composite transition metal oxide; and
calcining the lithium composite transition metal oxide.

9. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the calcining enhances intercrystalline coherence by growing crystals of lithium composite transition metal oxide particles synthesized by the synthesizing.

10. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the raw materials are a transition metal-containing metal precursor compound and a lithium precursor compound.

11. The method according to claim 10 , wherein the transition metal-containing metal precursor compound is a nitrate, sulfate or acetate containing a transition metal, and the lithium precursor compound is a compound selected from the group consisting of lithium hydroxide and lithium nitrate.

12. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the alkalifying agent is a compound selected from the group consisting of alkali metal hydroxides, alkaline earth metal hydroxides, and ammonia compounds.

13. The method according to claim 8 , wherein, in the synthesizing, the supercritical or subcritical water is water having a pressure of 180 bar to 550 bar and a temperature of 200° C. to 700° C.

14. The method according to claim 8 , wherein calcination temperature of the calcining is in a range of 600° C. to 1200° C.

Assignees

• Lg Chemical Ltd

Inventors

• Ryu Ji Hoon
• Kang Sung Joong
• Kang Seong Hoon
• Oh Sang Seung
• Jung Wang Mo
• Jo Chi Ho
• Han Gi Beom

Classifications

• B01F7/008

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01J19/1862

  placed in series · CPC title

• C01B25/45

  containing plural metal, or metal and ammonium · CPC title

• C01G1/02

  Oxides · CPC title

• H01M2004/028

  Positive electrodes · CPC title