Although holding a high capacity, Li-rich materials are far from the demand of practical market because of their inherent drawbacks, such as poor initial efficiency and rate capability. Herein, Li-rich materials of Li1.16Mn0.6Ni0.12Co0.12O2 have been prepared via a one-step solvothermal strategy. The detail characterizations demonstrate that the as-prepared materials present morphology of nanoparticle-aggregated hierarchical microspheres and a heterostructure of layered and Li4Mn5O12-type spinel components. Compared to materials of pure-layered structure, layered/spinel heterostructured materials exhibit simultaneously great reversible capacity (302 mAh g-1 at 0.2 C), high initial Coulombic efficiency (94% at 0.2 C) and remarkable rate capability (193 mAh g-1 at 10 C).
Keywords: Li-ion batteries; Li-rich cathode materials; hierarchical micro/nanostructure; layered/spinel heterostructure; solvothermal synthesis.