Modification of Ni-Rich FCG NMC and NCA Cathodes by Atomic Layer Deposition: Preventing Surface Phase Transitions for High-Voltage Lithium-Ion Batteries.

The energy density of current lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) based on layered LiMO2 cathodes (M = Ni, Mn, Co: NMC; M = Ni, Co, Al: NCA) needs to be improved significantly in order to compete with internal combustion engines and allow for widespread implementation of electric vehicles (EVs). In this report, we show that atomic layer deposition (ALD) of titania (TiO2) and alumina (Al2O3) on Ni-rich FCG NMC and NCA active material particles could substantially improve LIB performance and allow for increased upper cutoff voltage (UCV) during charging, which delivers significantly increased specific energy utilization. Our results show that Al2O3 coating improved the NMC cycling performance by 40% and the NCA cycling performance by 34% at 1 C/-1 C with respectively 4.35 V and 4.4 V UCV in 2 Ah pouch cells. High resolution TEM/SAED structural characterization revealed that Al2O3 coatings prevented surface-initiated layered-to-spinel phase transitions in coated materials which were prevalent in uncoated materials. EIS confirmed that Al2O3-coated materials had significantly lower increase in the charge transfer component of impedance during cycling. The ability to mitigate degradation mechanisms for Ni-rich NMC and NCA illustrated in this report provides insight into a method to enable the performance of high-voltage LIBs.

Strontium-doped perovskites rival platinum catalysts for treating NOx in simulated diesel exhaust.

The high cost and poor thermal durability of current lean nitrogen oxides (NOx) aftertreatment catalysts are two of the major barriers to widespread adoption of highly fuel-efficient diesel engines. We demonstrated the use of strontium-doped perovskite oxides as efficient platinum substitutes in diesel oxidation (DOC) and lean NOx trap (LNT) catalysts. The lanthanum-based perovskite catalysts coated on monolith substrates showed excellent activities for the NO oxidation reaction, a critical step that demands heavy usage of platinum in a current diesel aftertreatment system. Under realistic conditions, La(1-x)SrxCoO3 catalysts achieved higher NO-to-NO2 conversions than a commercial platinum-based DOC catalyst. Similarly, a La(0.9)Sr(0.1)MnO3-based LNT catalyst achieved NOx reduction performance comparable to that of a commercial platinum-based counterpart. The results show promise for a considerably lower-cost diesel exhaust treatment system.