Provided is a friction modifier giving excellent formability in producing a friction material and capable of reducing rust formation on a rotor even when the moisture-absorbed friction material is left pressed against the rotor for a long. The friction modifier is made of a titanate compound having a tunnel crystal structure, wherein the titanate compound has a rate of chlorine ion dissolution of 0.5 ppm to 400 ppm.

The present disclosure relates to methodologies, systems and apparatus for generating lithium ion battery materials. Starting materials are combined to form a homogeneous precursor solution including lithium, and a droplet maker is used to generate droplets of the precursor solution having controlled size. These droplets are introduced into a microwave generated plasma, where micron or sub-micron scale lithium-containing particles are formed. These lithium-containing particles are collected and formed into a slurry to form lithium ion battery materials.

Provided are a sodium ion secondary battery and a lithium ion secondary battery capable of undergoing a reversible large-capacity charge/discharge reaction. The sodium and lithium ion secondary batteries each have a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and an electrolyte. The active substance of the positive or negative electrode of these secondary batteries is a single-phase polycrystal represented by the following chemical formula: Na.sub.xTi.sub.4O.sub.9 (2≦x≦3), preferably Na.sub.2Ti.sub.4O.sub.9, having a one-dimensional tunnel type structure, and belonging to a monoclinic crystal system. This polycrystal is obtained by filling a container made of molybdenum or the like with a raw material containing a sodium compound and at least one of a titanium compound and metal titanium, and firing at 800° C. or more but 1600° C. or less.

According to the present invention, there are provided lithium titanate particles which exhibit an excellent initial discharge capacity and an enhanced high-efficiency discharge capacity retention rate as an active substance for non-aqueous electrolyte secondary batteries and a process for producing the lithium titanate particles, and Mg-containing lithium titanate particles.

The use of a C10~C34 fatty acids compound in the preparation of a the electrode materials for lithium-ion battery improves the coating uniformity of electrode materials prepared with solid-state method. The fatty acid provided by the invention is a dispersant, which achieves the uniformly dispersion of the coating material on the surface of battery material, and significantly increases the coating uniformity of the electrode material coated with solid-state method, it greatly improves the feasibility of manufacturing the electrode material of lithium-ion battery with solid-state method, and is conducive to the more economical and simpler manufacture of electrode material.

Provided is a production method that enables the production of a composite body of lithium titanate particles and a carbonaceous material, the composite body having excellent electrical characteristics and so on, and the composite body of lithium titanate particles and a carbonaceous material. A method for producing a composite body of lithium titanate particles and a carbonaceous material includes the steps of: preparing a raw material mixture using a titanium compound, a lithium compound, and an oligomer and/or raw material monomer of an alkali-soluble resin; and subjecting the raw material mixture to heat treatment under a non-oxidizing atmosphere to produce the composite body.

An objective of the present disclosure is to provide a method of producing metal compound particle group for an electricity storage device electrode that has an improved rate characteristic, the metal compound particle group, and an electrode formed of the metal compound particle group. The method of producing metal compound particle group applied for an electrode of an electricity storage device, the method includes a step of combining a precursor of metal compound particle with a carbon source to obtain a first composite material, a step of producing the metal compound particle by heat processing the first composite material under a non-oxidizing atmosphere to obtain a second composite material having the metal compound particle combined with carbon, and a step of eliminating carbon by heat processing the second composite material under an oxygen atmosphere to obtain the metal compound particle group having the metal compound particle coupled in a three-dimensional mesh structure.

An electrochemical device includes a negative electrode containing a negative electrode active material, a positive electrode, and an electrolyte. The negative electrode active material has a crystal structure with an Fm3m space group and contains a compound represented by composition formula (1) below,

Li.sub.xTi.sub.yO.sub.z   Formula (1), where 0.4≦x/y<2 and x/2+3y/2≦z≦x/2+2y.

A producing method of a solution that contains lithium, at least one of a niobium complex and a titanium complex, and ammonia, wherein an amount of the ammonia in the solution is 0.3 mass % or less. The solution is suitable for forming a coating layer capable of improving battery characteristics of an active material in a battery.

A mixed conductor represented by Formula 1:
A.sub.4±xTi.sub.5−yG.sub.zO.sub.12−δ  Formula 1 wherein, in Formula 1, A is a monovalent cation, G is at least one of a monovalent cation, a divalent cation, a trivalent cation, a tetravalent cation, a pentavalent cation, or a hexavalent cation, with the proviso that G is not Ti or Cr, wherein 0<x<2, 0.3<y<5, 0<z<5, and 0<δ≤3.