Improving the Structure and Cycling Stability of Ni-Rich Layered Cathodes by Dual Modification of Yttrium Doping and Surface Coating
Yan Huang, Shuang Cao, Xin Xie, Chao Wu, Sidra Jamil, Qinglan Zhao, Baobao Chang, Ying Wang, Xianyou Wang
Abstract
A crucial challenge for the commercialization of Ni-rich layered cathodes (LiNi0.88Co0.09Al0.03O2) is capacity decay during the cycling process, which originates from their interfacial instability and structural degradation. Herein, a one-step, dual-modified strategy is put forward to in situ synthesize the yttrium (Y)-doped and yttrium orthophosphate (YPO4)-modified LiNi0.88Co0.09Al0.03O2 cathode material. It is confirmed that the YPO4 coating layer as a good ion conductor can stabilize the solid–electrolyte interface, while the formative strong Y–O bond can bridle TM–O slabs to intensify the lattice structure in the state of deep delithium (>4.3 V). In particular, both the combined advantages effectively withstand the anisotropic strain generated upon the H2–H3 phase transition and further alleviate the crack generation in unit-cell dimensions, assuring a high-capacity delivery and fast Li+ diffusion kinetics. This dual-modified cathode shows advanced cycling stability (94.1% at 1C after 100 cycles in 2.7–4.3 V), even at a high cutoff voltage and high rate, and advanced rate capability (159.7 mAh g–1 at 10C). Therefore, it provides a novel solution to achieve both high capacity and highly stable cyclability in Ni-rich cathode materials.