Preparation of High Density LiNi0.8Co0.2-xTixO2 as Cathode Material for Lithium Ion Battery by a Molten Salt Method

Co-Ti co-doped cathode material LiNi(0.8)Co(0.2-x)TixO(2) (0 <= x <= 0.1) with a high tamping-density for Li ion battery was prepared by a molten-salt synthesis method using eutectic molten salt 0.62LiNO(3)-0.38LiOH, high-density precursor Co-doped Ni(OH)(2) and TiO2 powder. X-ray diffraction analysis shows that the synthesized material has a well-developed layered alpha-NaFeO2 structure. LiNi0.8Co0.2-xTiO2 has homogeneous particles with average sizes of 1-5 mu m and the particles become smaller with Ti content increasing. The tamping-density of LiNi0.8Co0.15Ti0.05O2 reaches to 3.17 g.cm(-3). Charge-discharge tests show that LiNi0.8Co0.15Ti0.05O2 has an initial discharge capacity as high as 169 mAh.g(-1) and excellent capacity retention in the range 3.0-4.3 Vat a specific current of 0.2 C.