Fast charging and high power delivery in rechargeable battery electrodes requires rapid ionic and electronic transport. In addition, long-term cycling demands electrode stability and the reversibility of ion insertion and extraction. Two structural families that satisfy these criteria are the crystallographic shear structures and bronze-like phases that are found in many niobium-containing binary and ternary early transition metal oxides (Figure 1). Several members of these large families have demonstrated the ability to store large quantities of lithium at rates well above 1C (1 h discharge) up to and above 20C (3 minute discharge); these rates are accessible even without nanostructuring.<br/> <br/>We investigate the structure–property relationships between the crystallographic shear and bronze niobium oxides, titanium niobium oxides, and tungsten niobium oxides (Figure 1) through an array of complementary advanced characterization tools. To probe subtle structural effects, our study combines local- and average-structure techniques including solid-state NMR spectroscopy, high-energy X-ray absorption spectroscopy, operando synchrotron diffraction, neutron diffraction, and density functional theory. Insights into the general structural features that enable high-rate performance will be discussed in an effort to guide the optimization of these materials and for next-generation materials design and discovery.

Structure–property relationships in complex transition metal oxides for high-rate energy storage applications

2019 Spring National Meeting

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.