One-step atmospheric microplasma synthesis of an NMC-type lithium-ion battery cathode

The manufacture of battery cathode materials is the most energy-intensive step in the production of commercial lithium-ion batteries; specifically, the synthesis of the widely used transition metal oxide cathodes can require tens of hours at temperatures exceeding 700 °C. Attempts to limit the react...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ryan Brow, Chaiwat Engtrakul, Kae Fink, Nicholas McKalip, Maxwell Schulze, Andrew Colclasure
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-08-01
Series:Electrochemistry Communications
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1388248125001249
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Summary:The manufacture of battery cathode materials is the most energy-intensive step in the production of commercial lithium-ion batteries; specifically, the synthesis of the widely used transition metal oxide cathodes can require tens of hours at temperatures exceeding 700 °C. Attempts to limit the reaction time and energy required to form crystalline cathode materials often still include a heating or calcination step. This communication aims to highlight a nascent yet novel synthesis route: a one-step atmospheric microplasma process for synthesizing cathode particles in less than one second. The hollow-tube reactor employed produces crystalline particles measuring 0.1–3 μm in diameter, displays narrow XRD peaks corresponding to the 003, 104, and 101 planes, and exhibits anodic redox behavior at 3.75 V vs. lithium—characteristic of transition-metal oxide cathode materials—all without requiring an additional calcination step.
ISSN:1388-2481