nanometaloxidesforli-ionbatteries.docVIP

Nano Metal Oxides for Li-Ion Batteries Juchen Guo and Chunsheng Wang University of Maryland Nanoscale and nanostructured metal oxides have drawn tremendous interests from the researchers working in the field of energy storage and energy conversion technologies in recent years. In this chapter, the state of the art of nano-metal oxide materials in Li-ion batteries will be discussed in attempt of a comprehensive overview. Lithium-ion battery has been a very importance category of rechargeable batteries since its first commercialization by Sony in 1991. It has been widely used in portable consumer electronics such as laptop computers, digital camera, small power tools, etc. However, its potential is not limited to such small devices due to several unique merits: Li-ion battery has the highest energy density among all types of rechargeable batteries that are currently on the market. It also has relatively low self discharge rate. Because of these virtues, interests in Li-ion batteries keep growing for defense, aerospace, smart grid system and automotive applications. To satisfy the demands of these emerging applications, the next generation of Li-ion batteries must achieve a holistic and striking advancement from the current technology, specifically in four criteria - energy density, discharging and charging rate (power density), safety feature, and cycle stability. The energy density, power density and cycle stability of Li-ion batteries are mainly determined by electrode materials and structures. Enhancement of the safety feature ultimately depends on development of non-flammable electrolyte and solid electrolyte to replace the current liquid electrolyte consisting of highly flammable organic solvents. The use of nano metal oxides (nanoscale or nanostructured) as anode materials, cathode materials, and electrolyte additives has greatly enhanced the performance of Li-ion batteries due to their unique chemical and structural properties. 14.1 Classification of Ele