The role of oxygen in automotive grade lithium-ion battery cathodes: an atomistic survey of ageing
Anastasiia Mikheenkova, Soham Mukherjee, Moritz Hirsbrunner, Pontus Törnblom, Cheuk‐Wai Tai, Carlo U. Segre, Yujia Ding, Wenliang Zhang, Teguh Citra Asmara, Wei Yuan, Thorsten Schmitt, Håkan Rensmo, Laurent Duda, Maria Hahlin
Abstract
octahedra in the delithiated state, but are larger in the lithiated state, a size difference that increases with battery ageing. These contrasting redox activities are reflected directly in structural changes. The NCA material exhibits the formation of nanopores upon ageing, and a possible connection to oxygen redox activity is discussed. The difference in interaction of Ni and Co with oxygen provides a key understanding of the mechanism and the electrochemical instability of Ni-rich layered transition metal oxide electrodes. Our research specifically highlights the significance of the role of oxygen in the electrochemical performance of electric-vehicle-grade NCA electrodes, offering important insights for the creation of next-generation long-lived lithium-ion batteries.