Articles and methods including layers for protection of electrodes in electrochemical cells are provided. As described herein, a layer, such as a protective layer for an electrode, may comprise a plurality of particles (e.g., crystalline inorganic particles, amorphous inorganic particles). In some aspects, at least a portion of the plurality of particles (e.g., inorganic particles) are fused to one another. For instance, in some aspects, the layer may be formed by aerosol deposition or another suitable process that involves subjecting the particles to a relatively high velocity such that fusion of particles occurs during deposition. In some cases, the protective layer may be porous.

The present disclosure relates to a lithium-sulfur battery cathode. The lithium-sulfur battery cathode comprises a carbon nanotube sponge and a plurality of sulfur nanoparticles. Wherein the carbon nanotube sponge comprises a plurality of micropores. The plurality of sulfur nanoparticles are uniformly distributed in the plurality of micropores. The present disclosure also relates a method for making the lithium-sulfur battery cathode and a lithium-sulfur battery using the lithium-sulfur battery cathode.

An all solid battery includes a solid electrolyte layer of which a main component is a Li—Al-M-PO.sub.4-based phosphoric acid salt, a first electrode layer that is provided on a first main face of the solid electrolyte layer and includes an active material, and a second electrode layer that is provided on a second main face of the solid electrolyte layer and includes an active material. “M” is at least one of Ge, Ti, and Zr. A region in which a ratio of MO.sub.2 with respect to Li—Al-M-PO.sub.4 is 5% or more is unevenly distributed from a center in a thickness of the solid electrolyte layer to 0.4 A downward and to 0.4 A upward, when the thickness of the solid electrolyte layer is expressed by “A”.

A lithium secondary battery includes a cathode formed of a cathode active material including a lithium metal oxide particle having a concentration gradient, and a coating formed on the lithium metal oxide particle, the coating including aluminum, titanium and zirconium, an anode, and a separator interposed between the cathode and the anode. The cathode active material includes 2,000 ppm to 4,000 ppm of aluminum, 4,000 ppm to 9,000 ppm of titanium and 400 ppm to 700 ppm of zirconium, based on the total weight of the cathode active material. The performance of the secondary battery may be maintained under a high temperature condition.

Provided is a post-treatment method of a lithium secondary battery including: an activation step of charging a heated lithium secondary battery to an activation voltage and maintaining the battery at the voltage, in a state in which the lithium secondary battery including a positive electrode including a nickel-rich (Ni-rich) lithium-transition metal composite oxide having a layered structure containing 0.8 moles or more of Ni based on a total of 1 mole of transition metals as a positive electrode active material; a negative electrode; a separator interposed between the positive electrode and the negative electrode; and an electrolyte solution, which are built in a battery case, is heated, the activation voltage being equal to or higher than a voltage generating phase transition of the lithium-transition metal composite oxide.

A miniature electrochemical cell having a volume of less than 0.5 cc is described. The cell has a casing of first and second ceramic substrates that are hermetically secured to each other to provide an internal space housing an electrode assembly. First and second conductive pathways extend through the ceramic substrates. The pathways have respective inner surfaces that are conductively connected to the respective anode and cathode current collectors and respective outer surfaces that provide for connection to a load. An electrolyte in the internal space of the housing activates the electrode assembly.

A cathode material of a lithium-ion battery and a fabricating method thereof, and a lithium-ion battery are described. The cathode material of the lithium-ion battery has hexaazatriphenylene embedded quinone (HATAQ) and/or its derivative small molecules, which have multiple redox-active sites and can form intermolecular hydrogen bonds to form a graphite-like layered structure. When HATAQ and/or its derivative small molecules are used as a cathode material, a stable structure can be maintained during a charge and discharge process and during lithium ions entering and exiting.

The present invention relates an electrode notching apparatus. The electrode notching apparatus comprises: a notching unit shaping an electrode into a predetermined pattern; a heating unit drying the electrode processed by the notching unit; and a collecting unit collecting the electrode dried by the heating unit, wherein the heating unit comprises: a heating body having a drying space through which the electrode supplied by the notching unit passes; and heating members directly heating a surface of the electrode passing through the drying space to dry moisture remaining on the electrode.

One of the objects of the present invention is to suppress mixing of a first layer and a second layer while forming the second layer before drying the first layer when manufacturing the electrode for the secondary battery in which the first layer and the second layer are laminated on the current collector. A method for manufacturing an electrode used as a positive electrode and a negative electrode of a secondary battery according to the present invention comprises applying a first layer slurry to a surface of a current collector, applying a second layer slurry on the first layer slurry before the first layer slurry is dried, and drying the first layer slurry and the second layer slurry after applying the first layer slurry and the second layer slurry to obtain a laminated structure in which a first layer and a second layer are laminated in this order on the current collector. A viscosity of the first layer slurry is 12000 mPa.Math.s or more, and/or a viscosity of the second layer slurry is 4000 mPa.Math.s or more when the viscosities of the first layer slurry and the second layer slurry are measured at 25° C. with a shear rate of 1/sec.

A method for producing a positive electrode active material, a positive electrode active material produced thereby, and a positive electrode and a lithium secondary battery including the same are provided. The method includes preparing a nickel-manganese-aluminum precursor having an atomic fraction of nickel of 90 atm % or greater in all transition metals, and mixing the nickel-manganese-aluminum precursor, a cobalt raw material, and a lithium raw material and heat treating the mixture.