Positive Electrode Material Doping for High-Nickel Battery Stability

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

The challenge in lithium ion batteries is the degradation of performance due to oxygen desorption and side reactions caused by Ni4+ when increasing nickel content, leading to issues with lifetime and resistance, and existing doping or coating methods fail to uniformly distribute doping elements, affecting battery performance.

Innovation Solution

A method of preparing a positive electrode active material by co-precipitating a composite transition metal hydroxide with zirconium and sintering it with lithium and aluminum-containing materials to control the distribution of zirconium and aluminum, resulting in a lithium composite transition metal oxide with higher internal concentrations of these elements.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Power

If nickel content is increased to improve battery performance, then battery output and mileage are improved, but oxygen desorption and side reactions occur causing degradation of lifetime and resistance

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebattery outputVSAvoidbattery lifetime

Core Design Contradiction:

PowerVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies local quality by creating a non-uniform distribution of zirconium and aluminum elements within the positive electrode active material particles. The interior regions contain higher concentrations of these stabilizing elements compared to the surface regions, locally enhancing structural stability and suppressing oxygen desorption where nickel oxidation is most problematic, while maintaining high nickel content overall for improved power output

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The patent uses composite materials by combining nickel-containing transition metal oxide with zirconium and aluminum dopants to create a multi-element composite structure. This composite positive electrode active material leverages the high capacity of nickel while the zirconium and aluminum components provide structural stabilization, preventing oxygen release and side reactions that would otherwise degrade battery lifetime

Inventive Principle:

Principle #40Composite materials

2Reliability

If doping or coating methods are used to suppress oxygen desorption, then battery lifetime is improved, but doping elements are not uniformly distributed causing non-uniform reaction and performance degradation

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebattery lifetimeVSAvoiduniformity of doping element distribution

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by incorporating zirconium and aluminum dopants into the interior regions of the positive electrode active material particles before the final sintering process. This pre-distribution ensures that stabilizing elements are positioned within the particle structure in advance, preventing oxygen desorption and ensuring uniform reaction during battery operation, rather than attempting to distribute them through surface coating after particle formation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

This approach improves battery performance by reducing side reactions, enhancing structural stability, and improving initial resistance, life, and thermal characteristics of the battery.

Implementation Method 1

preparing a composite transition metal hydroxide containing zirconium by a co-precipitation reaction while adding a transition metal-containing solution containing at least one selected from nickel, cobalt, and manganese, a zirconium-containing raw material, an ammonium cationic complexing agent, and a basic solution into a reactor

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectCo-precipitation reaction: Coprecipitation

Implementation Method 2

preparing a lithium composite transition metal oxide by mixing the composite transition metal hydroxide containing zirconium with a lithium-containing raw material and an aluminum-containing raw material and sintering the mixture

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectSintering: Sintering

Data Source

PatentUS20250343230A1Method of Preparing Positive Electrode Active Material and the Positive Electrode Active Material

Publication Date: 2025.11.06 LG CHEM LTD

AI summary

A method of preparing a positive electrode active material including preparing a composite transition metal hydroxide containing zirconium by a co-precipitation reaction while adding a transition metal-containing solution containing at least one of nickel, cobalt, or manganese, a zirconium-containing raw material, an ammonium cationic complexing agent, and a basic solution into a reactor and preparing a lithium composite transition metal oxide by mixing the composite transition metal hydroxide containing zirconium with a lithium-containing raw material and an aluminum-containing raw material to form a mixture and sintering the mixture. The lithium composite transition metal oxide includes zirconium, aluminum, and at least one of nickel, cobalt, or manganese. A positive electrode active material prepared by the preparation method is also provided.