Weakened capacity fading of Li-rich cathode via aqueous binder for advanced lithium ion batteries

Poor capacity stability during long cycle and poor adhesion under high potential hinder the Lithium-manganese rich layered oxides cathode from applications, and necessary strategy for this is clearly needed. In this work, a novel aqueous binder (lithium poly (acrylic acid), Li-PAA) is introduced for stabilized cyclic performance of Li_1.15Ni_0.17Co_0.11Mn_0.57O₂ materials. Contrasting with the commercial ones (polyvinylidene fluoride, PVDF), this binder is beneficial to enhance the connection between the electrode and current collector, which can improve cycle stability. In the meanwhile, optimization mechanisms are revealed via detailed measurements, which indicate the suppressed formation of spinel phase during cycling. As a result, the electrode with Li-PAA still delivers the specific capacity of 254.7 mAh g⁻¹ with the retention of 90.77% after 200 cycles at 0.1C, higher than that of electrode with PVDF (223.6 mAh g⁻¹,76.21%). The current subject study provides a conducive insight to develop an excellent binder based on Li-PAA for potential low-riced and environmentally friendly high energy density Li-ion batteries.