Umicore has been granted a patent for a lithium secondary cell with an operating voltage of at least 4.35V. The cell includes a cathode with a doped LiCoO2 active material, an anode with graphite, and an electrolyte with a carbonate-based solvent, a lithium salt, succinonitrile (SN), and lithium bis(oxalato)borate (LiBOB) additives. The active material is doped with at least 0.5 mole % of Mn, Mg, or Ti. The patent also includes specific ratios for the doped materials in the core and surface layer of the cathode. GlobalData’s report on Umicore gives a 360-degree view of the company including its patenting strategy. Buy the report here.
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Patent granted for lithium secondary cell with high operating voltage
A recently granted patent (Publication Number: US11688883B2) describes a lithium secondary cell with an operating voltage of at least 4.35V. The cell includes a cathode with a powderous, doped LiCoO2 active material. The active material is doped with at least 0.5 mole % of one or more of Mn, Mg, and Ti. The ratio of Mg:Co, Mn:Co, or Ti:Co in the surface layer of the active material is greater than 2 compared to the core. The anode of the cell consists of graphite, and the electrolyte contains a carbonate-based solvent, a lithium salt, and both succinonitrile (SN) and lithium bis(oxalato) borate (LiBOB) additives. The core of the active material has a layered crystal structure and includes Li, a metal M, and oxygen. The metal M has the formula M=Co1-a?M'a?, with 0=a?=0.05, and M' is Al or Al and one or more elements selected from the group consisting of Mg, Ti, Ga, and B. The surface layer of the active material includes Li, Co, and inorganic N-based oxides or lithiated oxides, where N is one or more metals from the group Al, Mg, Ti, Ni, Mn, Fe, Cu, Ca, Ba, Y, Sn, Sb, Na, Zn, Zr, and Si. The molar ratio of Al:Co in the active material is greater than 0.004.
During discharge at 45°C from a state of charge (SOC) of 100% at 4.5V to a SOC of 0% at 3V at a C/10 rate, the difference in SOC at 4.42V and 4.35V is at least 7% but less than 14%. The electrolyte of the cell contains 0.5-3 wt % succinonitrile and may also include 0.5-5 wt % lithium bis(oxalato)borate. The carbonate-based solvent in the electrolyte can include ethylene carbonate (EC), vinylene carbonate (VC), fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC), or diethyl carbonate (DEC), and the lithium salt is LiPF6.
The surface layer of the active material includes densely sintered islands that contain Ni and at least 5 mole % of Mn. The Mn concentration in the islands is at least 4 mole % higher than in the core, and the Ni concentration in the islands is at least 2 mole % higher than in the core.
The active material of the cell has a general composition of LixCo1-a-bM1aM2bO2-d with 0.97
The molar ratio of Li:(Co+Al) in the active material is greater than 0.98 and less than 1.01. The electrical conductivity of the active material is less than 10-5 S/cm when measured under a pressure of 63.7 MPa at 25°C.
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GlobalData Patent Analytics tracks bibliographic data, legal events data, point in time patent ownerships, and backward and forward citations from global patenting offices. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
