Multi-step process for making cathode active materials, and cathode active materials

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12401034-B2
Application number	US-202118037663-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 10, 2021
Priority date	Nov 20, 2020
Publication date	Aug 26, 2025
Grant date	Aug 26, 2025

Abstract

The present invention is related to a process for making an electrode active material wherein said process comprises the following steps: (a) Providing a hydroxide TM(OH) 2 or at least one oxide TMO or at least one oxyhydroxide of TM or a combination of at least two of the foregoing wherein TM is one or more metals and contains at least 97 mol-% Ni and, optionally, in total up to 3 mol-% of at least one metal selected from Al, Ti, Zr, V, Co, Zn, Ba, and Mn; (b) mixing said hydroxide TM(OH) 2 or oxide TMO or oxyhydroxide of TM or combination with a source of lithium and a source of Mg wherein the molar amount of (Li+Mg) corresponds to 75 to 95 mol-% of TM; (c) treating the mixture obtained from step (b) thermally at a temperature in the range of from 450 to 650° C., thereby obtaining an intermediate; (d) mixing the intermediate from step (c) with a source of Li and with at least one compound of a metal M 1 selected from Al, Zr, Co, Mn, Nb, Ta, Mo, and W; (e) treating the mixture obtained from step (d) thermally at a temperature in the range of from 500 to 850° C.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A particulate electrode active material according to the general formula (Li a Mg b ) 1+x (TM c M 1 d ) 1−x O 2 , wherein
TM contains at least 97 mol-% Ni and, optionally, up to 1 mol-% of at least one metal selected from Ti, Al, Zr, V, Co, Zn, Ba, and Mn,
M 1 is selected from Al, Zr, Co, Mn, Nb, Ta, Mo, and W,
wherein M 1 comprises at least one of Al, Zr, Nb, Ta, Mo, and W,
a:b is in the range of from 40:1 to 200:1, and a+b=1,
c:d is in the range of from 50:1 to 250:1, and c+d=1,
total molar ratio of (Li+Mg) to (TM+M 1 ) is in the range of from 1:1 to 1.05:1,
0.00 ≤x ≤0.05;

wherein said electrode active material is comprised from secondary particles that are agglomerates of primary particles, and M 1 is enriched at the surface of the primary particles.

2. The particulate electrode active material according to claim 1 , wherein TM is nickel.

3. The particulate electrode active material according to claim 1 , wherein M 1 comprises Al, Zr or combinations thereof.

4. A process for making the particulate electrode active material according to claim 1 , wherein said process comprises the following steps:
(a) providing a hydroxide TM(OH) 2 or at least one oxide TMO or at least one oxyhydroxide of TM or a combination of at least two of the foregoing wherein TM is one or more metals and contains at least 97 mol-% Ni and, optionally, in total up to 1 mol-% of at least one metal selected from Al, Ti, Zr, V, Co, Zn, Ba, and Mn,
(b) mixing said hydroxide TM(OH) 2 or oxide TMO or oxyhydroxide of TM or combination with a source of lithium and a source of Mg wherein the molar amount of (Li+Mg) corresponds to 75 to 95 mol-% of TM,
(c) treating the mixture obtained from step (b) thermally at a temperature in the range of from 450 to 650° C., thereby obtaining an intermediate,
(d) mixing the intermediate from step (c) with a source of Li and with at least one compound of a metal M 1 selected from Al, Zr, Co, Mn, Nb, Ta, Mo, and W, wherein M 1 comprises at least one of Al, Zr, Nb, Ta, Mo, and W, and
(e) treating the mixture obtained from step (d) thermally at a temperature in the range of from 500 to 850° C.

5. The process according to claim 4 , wherein the total molar ratio of (Li+Mg) to (TM+M 1 ) is in the range of from 1:1 to 1.05:1.

6. The process according to claim 4 , wherein in step (b), the molar ratio of Li to Mg is in the range of from 200:1 to 25:1.

7. The process according to claim 4 , wherein the source of Mg is selected from Mg(OH) 2 and MgO.

8. The process according to claim 4 , wherein in step (b), a source of Al is added.

9. The process according to claim 4 , wherein the temperature in step (e) is higher than in step (c).

10. The process according to claim 4 , wherein steps (c) and (e) are performed in an atmosphere of at least 80 vol-% oxygen.

11. The process according to claim 4 , wherein the molar ratio of M 1 to TM is in the range of from 1:50 to 1:250.

12. The process according to claim 4 , wherein the at least one compound of a metal M 1 is selected from the group consisting of oxides of M 1 , hydroxides of M 1 , and oxyhydroxides of M 1 .

13. A cathode containing
(A) at least one electrode active material according to claim 1 ,
(B) carbon in electrically conductive form, and
(C) a binder material.

14. The cathode according to claim 13 containing
(A) 80 to 98% by weight cathode active material,
(B) 1 to 17% by weight of carbon, and
(C) 3 to 10% by weight of binder material,
percentages referring to the sum of (A), (B) and (C).

15. An electrochemical cell containing at least one cathode according to claim 13 .

Assignees

• Basf Se

Inventors

• Sommer Heino
• Riewald Felix Florian
• Kurzhals Philipp

Classifications

• H01M2004/028

  Positive electrodes · CPC title

• H01M10/052

  Li-accumulators · CPC title

• H01M4/625

  Carbon or graphite · CPC title

• H01M4/131

  Electrodes based on mixed oxides or hydroxides, or on mixtures of oxides or hydroxides, e.g. LiCoOx · CPC title

• H01M4/0471

  involving thermal treatment, e.g. firing, sintering, backing particulate active material, thermal decomposition, pyrolysis · CPC title