The increasing demand for high-energy Li-ion batteries for theelectrification of personal transportation may lead to uncertainty inthe global supply of raw materials (Co and Ni). Here we propose a novelMn-rich composition, which has a quasi-ordered structure with previouslyunobserved two intermixed cation-ordering sequences. The partiallyordered structure stabilizes the delithiated cathode at a high cut-off voltage,offering strain-free characteristics, with structural variations along boththe a and c axes limited to approximately 1%. Consequently, the cathode canoperate at 4.6 V while delivering a reversible capacity comparable to that ofNi-rich Li(Ni0.8Co 0.1Mn0.1)O2. Moreover, a high capacity is maintained duringlong-term and high-voltage cycling in full cells with exceptional thermalsafety. The high-performance Mn-rich layered cathodes characterized byquasi-ordered crystal structure can potentially relieve supply uncertaintyresulting from the rising demand for Ni in the battery industry andenvironmental concerns associated with the extraction of Ni from its ores.
Park et al. (Wed,) studied this question.