A synchronously dual-conductive coating towards enhancing the electrochemical performance of LiNi0·8Co0·15Al0·05O2 cathode material

Highlights:• A dual-conductive ATO/Li₂TiO₃ was coated on LiNi_0·8Co_0·15Al_0·05O₂ (NCA).• ATO/Li₂TiO₃ coating enhanced the storage characteristics of NCA.• The coated NCA exhibited enhanced rate capability and cyclability.• The capacity increment of the coated NCA at a high rate of 5 C was 24 mA h/g.• ATO/Li₂TiO₃ coating enhanced cathode-electrolyte interphase stability during cycles. -- Abstract: A dual-conductive coating consisting of electronically conductive antimony -doped tin oxide (ATO) and ionically conductive lithium titanate (Li₂TiO₃, LTO) was applied to LiNi_0·8Co_0·15Al_0·05O₂ (NCA) cathode material to enhance its electrochemical performance. Impressively, the dual-conductive coated NCA material delivered a remarkable capacity of 153 mAh g⁻¹ at a high rate of 5 C, which was 24 mAh g⁻¹ higher than that for uncoated NCA material. Moreover, the dual-conductive coating resulted in the increase in the cycling stability. In particular, the coated NCA material acquired high capacity retention of 88.56% at 1 C-rate and 60 °C after 200 cycles, in contrast to 76.15% retention for bare NCA. An in-depth understanding of the improvement of cyclability of the coated NCA material under elevated temperature was demonstrated emphatically. This dual-conductive coating provides a viable strategy for promoting the performance and applicability for nickel-rich layered cathode materials.