Electrochemical performance of granulated titania nanoparticles

The electrochemical performance of Li-ion insertion into electrodes made of various sizes of anatase titania nanoparticles embedded in larger granulated entities (1–10 μm) is investigated. The granules are formed by spray drying of a suspension containing titania nanoparticles made by hydrolyzing titanium tetraisopropoxide (TTIP). Depending on the three process steps, i.e. hydrolysis–condensation, hydrothermal processing and spray drying, different properties for the electrode made from these granules can be achieved in terms of phase composition, specific surface area (SSA) and specific charge capacity. Hydrothermally processed (HP) particles are more resistant to calcination than sol–gel precipitated (SGP) ones and have a higher SSA which leads to a better performance with respect to specific charge capacity. Electrodes made from granulated nanoparticles have superior specific charge capacity than from non-granulated ones as the former have more inter-particle contacts.