A titanium-niobium oxide achieves suppressed adulteration with TiO.sub.2 and Ti.sub.2Nb.sub.10O.sub.29 and suppressed growth of crystal grains, and an electrode and a lithium-ion secondary cell include such a titanium-niobium oxide. The titanium-niobium oxide contains less than 0.30 at % of an alkali metal element and at least one element selected from the group consisting of Al, Y, La, Ce, Pr, and Sm. A ratio of thea total atomic weight of Al, Y, La, Ce, Pr, and Sm to thea total atomic weight of Ti and Nb is equal to or more than 0.001.

The present invention relates to a positive electrode active material which is formed such that a lithium ion diffusion path in a lithium composite oxide constituting a positive electrode active material is directed to a specific crystal plane, and has improved electrochemical properties and stability by improving the growth of the crystal plane to which the lithium ion diffusion path is directed, and a lithium secondary battery using the same.

A production method of a titanium-niobium composite oxide uses, as a source material, niobium oxide including a mixture of a plurality of crystal forms including a first Nb2O5 structure and at least either of a second Nb2O5 structure and a third Nb2O5 structure. The first Nb2O5 structure has a first peak with 2θ from 23.6° to 23.8°, a peak with 2θ from 24.8° to 25.0°, and a peak with 2θ from 25.4° to 25.6°. The second Nb2O5 structure has a peak with 2θ from 23.7° to 23.9°, a peak with 2θ from 24.3° to 24.5°, and a peak with 2θ from 25.4° to 25.6°. The third Nb2O5 structure has a peak with 2θ from 22.5° to 22.7°, a peak with 2θ from 28.3° to 28.5°, and a peak with 2θ from 28.8° to 29.0°.

A method for preparing a solid-state electrolyte powder includes the following steps. An oxygen-free sintering process is performed at a first sintering temperature, such that a refined salt mixture forms a solid-state electrolyte powder precursor mixture. An oxygen-containing sintering process is performed at a second sintering temperature, such that the solid-state electrolyte powder precursor mixture forms a solid-state electrolyte powder, in which the second sintering temperature is higher than the first sintering temperature.

A method is disclosed for producing flakes of a first material, the method comprising: a) supporting two supply cylinders of the first material and a fatiguing rod assembly, that includes at least one textured fatiguing rod, so that each fatiguing rod is sandwiched between the two cylinders, each fatiguing rod having a diameter smaller than an initial diameter of the two supply cylinders and being made of a second harder material; b) urging the surfaces of the two supply cylinders into contact with each fatiguing rod; and c) causing the supply cylinders and the fatiguing rod(s) to rotate while making rolling line contact with one another; wherein the supply cylinders and each fatiguing rod are urged against one another with sufficiently high contact pressure to modify the surface of the supply cylinders by fatigue and result in separation of flakes from the surfaces of the cylinders.

A spherical silica powder which, when heated from 25° C. up to 1000° C. at a rate of 30° C./min, desorbs water molecules in an amount of 0.01 mmol/g or less at 500° C. to 1000° C., and which has a specific surface area of 1 to 30 m.sup.2/g.

An LFP electrode material is provided which has improved impedance, power during cold cranking, rate capacity retention, charge transfer resistance over the current LFP based cathode materials. The electrode material comprises crystalline primary particles and secondary particles, where the primary particle is formed from a plate-shaped single-phase spheniscidite precursor and a lithium source. The LFP includes an LFP phase behavior where the LFP phase behavior includes an extended solid-solution range.

It is related to a positive active material for lithium secondary battery, a manufacturing method thereof, and a lithium secondary battery containing the same, provides that a positive active material for lithium secondary battery, wherein, it is a layered lithium metal compound comprises nickel, cobalt, and manganese, and aluminum, zirconium, and boron are doped.

Disclosed is a cordierite sintered body comprising from 90 to 98% by volume of a cordierite crystal phase as measured using x ray diffraction, SEM and image processing methods wherein the cordierite sintered body has at least one surface comprising pores having a diameter of from 0.1 to 5 um as measured using SEM and image processing methods. The cordierite sintered body has a Young's modulus of about 125 GPa or greater, and volumetric porosity of less than about 4%. Methods of making the cordierite sintered body are also disclosed.

Nickelate cathode materials are provided, wherein said cathode material has an X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern comprising a first peak from about 40.0-41.6 2Θ, and a second peak from about 62.6-63.0 2 Θ. Methods of preparing such cathode materials are also provided. Alkaline electrochemical cells comprising said cathode materials are also provided.