Synthesis and characterization of high tap-density layered Li[Ni1/3Co1/3Mn1/3]O2 cathode material via hydroxide co-precipitation

Li[Ni1/3Co1/3Mn1/3]O2 was prepared by mixing uniform co-precipitated spherical metal hydroxide (Ni1/3Co1/3Mn1/3)(OH)2 with 7% excess LiOH followed by heat-treatment. The tap-density of the powder obtained was 2.38 g cm−3, and it was characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), particle size distribution measurement, scanning electron microscope-energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM-EDS) and galvanostatic charge–discharge tests. The XRD studies showed that the material had a well-ordered layered structure with small amount of cation mixing. It can be seen from the EDS results that the transition metals (Ni, Co and Mn) in Li[Ni1/3Co1/3Mn1/3]O2 are uniformly distributed. Initial charge and discharge capacity of 185.08 and 166.99 mAh g−1 was obtained between 3 and 4.3 V at a current density of 16 mA g−1, and the capacity of 154.14 mAh g−1 was retained at the end of 30 charge–discharge cycles with the capacity retention of 93%.