Improvement of Electrochemical Properties and Thermal Stability of a Ni-rich Cathode Material by Polypropylene Coating

The interface between the surface of a cathode material and the electrolyte gives rise to surface reactions such as solid electrolyte interface (SEI) and chemical side reactions. These reactions lead to increased surface resistance and charge transfer resistance. It is consequently necessary to improve the electrochemical characteristics by suppressing these reactions. In order to suppress unnecessary surface reactions, we coated cathode material using polypropylene (PP). The PP coating layer effectively reduced the SEI film that is generated after a 4.3 V initial charging process. By mitigating the formation of the SEI film, the PP-coated Li[(Ni_0.6Co_0.1Mn_0.3)_0.36(Ni_0.80Co_0.15Al0.05)_0.64)]O₂(NCS) electrode provided enhanced transport of Li⁺ ions due to reduced SEI resistance (R_SEI) and charge transfer resistance (R_ct). The initial charge and discharge efficiency of the PP-coated NCS electrode was 96.2 % at a current density of 17 mA/g in a voltage range of 3.0 ~ 4.3 V, whereas the efficiency of the NCS electrode was only 94.7 %. The presence of the protective PP layer on the cathode improved the thermal stability by reducing the generated heat, and this was confirmed via DSC analysis by an increased exothermic peak.