Introducing 4s–2p Orbital Hybridization to Stabilize Spinel Oxide Cathodes for Lithium‐Ion Batteries. Issue 27 (5th May 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Liang, Gemeng; Olsson, Emilia; Zou, Jinshuo; Wu, Zhibin; Li, Jingxi; Lu, Cheng‐Zhang; D'Angelo, Anita M.; Johannessen, Bernt; Thomsen, Lars; Cowie, Bruce; Peterson, Vanessa K.; Cai, Qiong; Pang, Wei Kong; Guo, Zaiping
• Is Part Of: Angewandte Chemie international edition. Volume 61:Issue 27(2022)
• Page Start: n/a
• Page End: n/a
• Publication Date: 2022-05-05
• Subjects: 4s–2p Orbital Hybridization -- Lithium-Ion Batteries -- Orbital Modification -- Oxygen Framework -- Spinel Oxides; Chemistry -- Periodicals; 540
• DOI: 10.1002/anie.202201969
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1433-7851

Abstract

Abstract: Oxides composed of an oxygen framework and interstitial cations are promising cathode materials for lithium‐ion batteries. However, the instability of the oxygen framework under harsh operating conditions results in fast battery capacity decay, due to the weak orbital interactions between cations and oxygen (mainly 3 d –2 p interaction). Here, a robust and endurable oxygen framework is created by introducing strong 4 s –2 p orbital hybridization into the structure using LiNi0.5 Mn1.5 O4 oxide as an example. The modified oxide delivers extraordinarily stable battery performance, achieving 71.4 % capacity retention after 2000 cycles at 1 C. This work shows that an orbital‐level understanding can be leveraged to engineer high structural stability of the anion oxygen framework of oxides. Moreover, the similarity of the oxygen lattice between oxide electrodes makes this approach extendable to other electrodes, with orbital‐focused engineering a new avenue for the fundamental modification of battery materials. Abstract : Strong molecular bonding formed by Ge 4 s and O 2 p orbitals contributes to a robust and endurable metal–oxygen framework of the spinel oxide structure, which is not achievable via common 3 d –2 p orbital hybridization alone, making the oxide cathodes exhibit extraordinarily stable electrochemical performance in lithium‐ion batteries.