Various lithium cobalt oxides materials doped with one or more metal dopants having a chemical formula of Li.sub.xCo.sub.yO.sub.z (doped Me1.sub.a Me2.sub.b Me3.sub.c . . . MeN.sub.n), and method and apparatus of producing the various lithium cobalt oxides materials are provided. The method includes adjusting a molar ratio M.sub.LiSalt:M.sub.CoSalt:M.sub.Me1Salt:M.sub.Me2Salt:M.sub.Me3Salt:. . . M.sub.MeNSalt of a lithium-containing salt, a cobalt-containing salt and one or more metal-dopant-containing salts within a liquid mixture to be equivalent to a ratio of x:y:a:b:c: . . . n , drying a mist of the liquid mixture in the presence of a gas to form a gas-solid mixture, separating the gas-solid mixture into one or more solid particles of an oxide material, and annealing the solid particles of the oxide material in the presence of another gas flow to obtain crystalized particles of the lithium cobalt oxide material. The process system has a mist generator, a drying chamber, one or more gas-solid separator, and one or more reactors.

Provided are a method for preparing a hydrophobic silica aerogel by the combined use of a first surface modifier and a second surface modifier, and a hydrophobic silica aerogel prepared by using the method. A hydrophobic silica aerogel having excellent physical properties and pore characteristics as well as a high degree of hydrophobicity may be prepared with high efficiency by the preparation method according to the present invention.

The present invention is directed towards a process for making a lithiated transition metal oxide, said process comprising the following steps: (a) providing a precursor selected from mixed oxides, hydroxides, oxyhydroxides, and carbonates of nickel and at least one transition metal selected from manganese and cobalt, wherein at least 45 mole-% of the cations of the precursor are Ni cations, (b) mixing said precursor with at least one lithium salt selected from LiOH, Li.sub.2O, Li.sub.2CO.sub.3, and LiNO.sub.3, thereby obtaining a mixture, (c) adding at least one phosphorus compound of general formula (I) X.sub.yH.sub.3−yPO.sub.4 (I) wherein X is selected from NH.sub.4 and Li, y is 1 or 2, to the mixture obtained in step (b), wherein steps (b) and (c) may be performed consecutively or simultaneously, treating the mixture so obtained at a temperature in the range of from 650 to 950° C.

The purpose of the present is to provide a modified AlN source for suppressing downfall defects. This manufacturing method of a modified aluminum nitride source involves a heat treatment step for heat treating an aluminum nitride source and generating an aluminum nitride sintered body.

The present invention is a method of producing a lanthanum carbonate hydroxide or lanthanum oxycarbonate which has improved properties. The method involves the use of a water soluble lanthanum and a water soluble non-alkali metal carbonate or bicarbonate. The resulting material can be used as a phosphate binder individually or for treating patients with hyperphosphatemia.

There is provided a ferrite powder for bonded magnets capable of producing ferrite bonded magnets with high BH.sub.max, excellent in MFR when converted to a compound, with high p-iHc, wherein an average particle size of particles obtained by a dry laser diffraction measurement is 5 μm or less, a specific surface area is 1.90 m.sup.2/g or more and less than 3.00 m.sup.2/g, a compression density is 3.40 g/cm.sup.3 or more and less than 3.73 g/cm.sup.3, and a compressed molding has a coercive force of 2800 Oe or more and less than 3250 Oe.

The present disclosure provides a novel composite transition metal oxide-based precursor, a preparing method thereof, and a cathode active material for a secondary battery prepared from the precursor. In the present disclosure, it is possible to enhance productivity and economic efficiency due to a high reaction yield during the synthesis of a cathode active material and to enhance the initial discharge capacity and lifespan characteristics of a secondary battery including a cathode active material by using an oxide-based precursor having a high oxygen fraction instead of a hydroxide-based precursor used as a precursor of a cathode active material in the related art.

The invention relates to a method for producing solid particles from an inorganic solid containing at least one alkali metal and/or alkaline earth metal, comprising at least the following steps: a) providing the inorganic solid containing at least one alkali metal and/or alkaline earth metal; b) extracting the at least one alkali metal and/or alkaline earth metal from the inorganic solid containing alkali metal and/or alkaline earth metal to obtain an extract containing the alkali metal and/or alkaline earth metal and an alkali metal-depleted and/or alkaline earth metal-depleted residue; c) separating the extract from the residue; d) processing the residue to obtain the solid particles, wherein at least one of the processing steps is selected from a group comprising transporting, filling, packaging, washing, drying, adjusting the pH value, separating according to a mean grain size and/or mass and/or density, adjusting a mean grain size, magnetic separating, calcining, thermal rounding and surface coating.

A carbonate precursor compound for manufacturing a lithium metal (M)-oxide powder usable as an active positive electrode material in lithium-ion batteries, M comprising 20 to 90 mol % Ni, 10 to 70 mol % Mn and 10 to 40 mol % Co, the precursor further comprising a sodium and sulfur impurity, wherein the sodium to sulfur molar ratio (Na/S) is 0.4<Na/S<2. Theslithium metal (M)-oxide powder has a particle size distribution with 10 μm≦D50≦20 μm, a specific surface with 0.9≦BET≦5, the BET being expressed in g/cm2, the powder further comprises a sodium and sulfur impurity, wherein the sum (2* Nawt)+Swt of the sodium (Nawt) and sulfur (S wt) content expressed in wt % is more than 0.4 wt % and less than 1.6 wt %, and wherein the sodium to sulfur molar ratio (Na/S) is 0.4<Na/S<2.

A method for producing a M-carbonate precursor of a Li-M oxide cathode material in a continuous reactor, wherein M=NixMnyCozAn, A being a dopant, with x>0, y>0, 0≦z≦0.35, 0≦n≦0.02 and x+y+z+n=1, the method comprising the steps of: —providing a feed solution comprising Ni-, Mn-, Co- and A-ions, and having a molar metal content M″ feed, —providing an ionic solution comprising either one or both of a carbonate and a bicarbonate solution, the ionic solution further comprising either one or both of Na- and K-ions, —providing a slurry comprising seeds comprising M′-ions and having a molar metal content M′ seeds, wherein M′=Nix′Mny′Coz′A′n′, A′ being a dopant, with 0≦x′≦1, 0≦y′≦1, 0≦z′≦1, 0≦n′≦1 and x′+y′+z′+n′=1, and wherein the molar ratio M′ seeds/M″ feed is between 0.001 and 0.1, —mixing the feed solution, the ionic solution and the slurry in the reactor, thereby obtaining a reactive liquid mixture, —precipitating a carbonate onto the seeds in the reactive liquid mixture, thereby obtaining a reacted liquid mixture and the M-carbonate precursor, and —separating the M-carbonate precursor from the reacted liquid mixture.