Polyurethane foam as restrict reaction vessel to synthesis of Li_1.2Mn_0.54Ni_0.13Co_0.13O₂for lithium-ion batteries

In this work, the polyurethane (PU) foam is applied as restrict reaction vessel to synthesis of nanometer dimension Li-rich Manganese-based layered cathode material Li 1.2 Mn 0.54 Ni 0.13 Co 0.13 O 2 (LMNCO). The PU foam has strong ability of absorbing mixed metal salt solution and keeping them in a relatively stable system during the freeze-drying process. Meanwhile, it supplies abundant three-dimensional interconnecting structure with macro-pore sizes of about 200–500 μ m, which can be served as a sacrificial framework, obstructing the raw materials aggregation and supporting the products in the pre-sintering process. The results demonstrate that the facile method performed on PU foam could effectively suppress the growth of grains. Scanning electron microscopy indicates that the Li 1.2 Mn 0.54 Ni 0.13 Co 0.13 O 2 particles have a size of 100–600 nm and mainly distributed between 200–300 nm. Moreover, it displays excellent cycle performance with high capacity retention rate of 85.3% after 100 cycles at a current density of 20 mA g −1 .