A novel hierarchical precursor of densely integrated hydroxide nanoflakes on oxide microspheres toward high-performance layered Ni-rich cathode for lithium ion batteries

Herein, a novel hierarchical precursor of Ni0.8Co0.1Mn0.1Ox@Ni0.8Co0.1Mn0.1(OH)(2) is proposed for the first time, which was synthesized by densely integrating co-precipitated Ni0.8Co0.1Mn0.1(OH)(2) nanoflakes onto spray-pyrolyzed Ni0.8Co0.1Mn0.1Ox microspheres. The co-precipitated hydroxide layer can prevent the Ni0.8Co0.1Mn0.1Ox microspheres from fragmenting during the sintering process, thus yielding uniform LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 spheres with a hollow interior morphology. Strikingly, the obtained spherical LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 cathode exhibits improved tap density and initial coulombic efficiency, as well as excellent cycling stability and superior rate capability. Discharge capacities of 169 mA h g(-1) after 300 cycles at 1C (180 mA g(-1)) of between 2.8 and 4.3 V are consistently obtained, corresponding to 90.5% capacity retention. Significantly, it is strongly envisioned that this novel hierarchical structure design concept holds great promise for the architectural construction of other energy storage materials.