A positive electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery that includes a lithium transition metal composite oxide having a spinel structure and containing nickel and manganese is provided. The positive electrode active material includes a first surface region having a chemical composition with a molar ratio of nickel to manganese of 0.1 or less on the surface of the lithium transition metal composite oxide.

A lithium metal oxide suitable for use as a cathode material in a rechargeable battery having a general formula of: Li.sub.xM.sub.zM.sub.zO.sub.uF.sub.y, where x is 1.80<x<2.20, y=1, and more specifically 1.90<x<2.10, with 1.80<u<2.20. Preferably, 1.90<u<2.10, and 0.80<y<1.20, or more specifically, 0.90<y<1.10. The lithium metal oxide has a cation-disordered rocksalt structure, wherein M is a transition metal selected from a first group consisting of Ni, Mn, Co, Fe, and combinations thereof. M is a transition metal selected from a second group consisting of Ti, Zr, Nb, Mo, Sn, Hf, Te, Sb, and combinations thereof. M has a first oxidation state q and M has a second oxidation state q, with (q/z)+(q/z)=+3, preferably +2.7q/z)+(q/z)+3.3.

Compounds that can be used as cathode active materials for lithium ion batteries are described. In some embodiments, the cathode active material includes the compound Li.sub.xNi.sub.aM.sub.bN.sub.cO.sub.2 where M is selected from Mn, Ti, Zr, Ge, Sn, Te and a combination thereof; N is selected from Mg, Be, Ca, Sr, Ba, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, and a combination thereof; 0.9<x<1.1; 0.7<a<1; 0<b<0.3; 0<c<0.3; and a+b+c=1. Other cathode active materials, precursors, and methods of manufacture are presented.

Disclosed is a cathode active material in which lithium cobalt oxide particles and manganese (Mn) or titanium (Ti)-containing lithium transition metal oxide particles co-exist and a method of preparing the same.

The present application provides a positive electrode and a lithium-ion battery. The positive electrode comprises a current collector; a first active material layer comprising a first active material; and a second active material layer; wherein the first active material layer is arranged between the current collector and the second active material layer, the first active material layer comprises a first active material, and the first active material is at least one selected from a group consisting of a modified lithium transition metal oxide positive electrode material and a modified lithium iron phosphate. The positive electrode of the present application helps to improve the thermal stability of the lithium-ion battery, and the improvement of the thermal stability may reduce the proportion of the thermal runaway when the lithium-ion battery is internally short-circuited so that the safety performance of the lithium-ion battery is improved.

A process for processing an electroactive mesoporous material into a cathode, or an anode or a supercapacitor material using one or more of the steps of: (a) modifying the material to remove impurities or substitute materials in the powder by a hydrothermal process; (b) intercalating the material by injecting the material with the charge carrier ion using a hydrothermal process or supercritical CO.sub.2 fluid process where the solvent fluid contains a soluble material of the charge carrier ion; (c) sintering the intercalated material; (d) providing a layer of a conducting material within the material pores; (e) filling the pores and interparticle spaces with an electrolyte generally comprising the charge carrier ion and a solvent; and for solid state materials, (f) polymerizing the solvent to encapsulate the powders.

An active material precursor having a hollow structure is represented by Formula 1:

Ni.sub.aMn.sub.bCo.sub.cM.sub.d(OH).sub.2Formula 1 where, in Formula 1, 0<a1, 0<b1, 0<c1, 0d1, and a+b+c=1; and M is at least one metal selected from the group consisting of titanium (Ti) vanadium (V), chromium (Cr), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), magnesium (Mg), zirconium (Zr), and boron (B). A method of the active material precursor includes: mixing a nickel precursor, a manganese precursor, a cobalt precursor, a metal (M) precursor, and a solvent to prepare a precursor mixture; and mixing the precursor mixture and a pH adjusting agent to adjust a pH value of the resultant to be in a range of about 11.0 to about 11.2.

A process for preparing a metal oxide-containing powder that comprises conducting spray pyrolysis that comprises aerosolizing a slurry that comprises solid-phase particles in a liquid that comprises at least one precursor compound, which comprises one or more metallic elements of at least one metal oxide, to form droplets of said slurry, and calcining the droplets to at least partially decompose the at least one precursor compound and form the metal oxide-containing powder having a non-hollow morphology.

The present disclosure provides a cobalt-free and nickel-free positive electrode material and a preparation method therefor, and a battery. The preparation method includes: preparing a cobalt-free and nickel-free matrix material, and mixing the cobalt-free and nickel-free matrix material, a lithium source, and a divalent manganese compound for reaction to obtain the cobalt-free and nickel-free positive electrode material. By adding the divalent manganese compound, the generation of lamellar LiMnO.sub.2 and spinel LiMn.sub.2O.sub.4 is inhibited, the generation of lamellar Li.sub.2MnO.sub.3 is promoted, and the cycle performance of the material is improved.

An exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure resides in a positive electrode active material for non-aqueous electrolyte secondary batteries including a Li.sub.2MnO.sub.3LiMO.sub.2 solid solution {M is at least one metal element} which shows two peaks in an X-ray diffraction pattern each having a peak top at a diffraction angle of 18 to 19 and satisfying 0.001<R.sub.(B/A)<0.03, the R.sub.(B/A) is the ratio of the intensity B of one of the peaks on the higher angle side to the intensity A of the other peak on the lower angle side.