The potential Na-ion cathode material Na 2 FePO 4 F is investigated here by ex situ 23 Na solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (ssNMR) in order to characterize the structure and ion mobility as a function of electrochemical cycling. The use of fast magic angle spinning (MAS) speeds of 65 kHz allows for the collection of high-resolution 23 Na NMR spectra that reveal two unique peaks at +450 and −175 ppm, corresponding to the two crystallographically unique Na sites in the material of interest. Two-dimensional NMR exchange spectroscopy results reveal that chemical exchange between the Na ions residing in distinct environments has a maximum hopping rate of ∼200 Hz. The collection of one-dimensional NMR spectra as a function of electrochemical cycling reveals the reproducible formation of a new peak at +320 ppm in the 23 Na NMR spectrum at all intermediate states of charge. The appearance of this resonance at +320 ppm is attributed to the fully oxidized (NaFePO 4 F) phase that is present even upon initial electrochemical oxidation. The simultaneous existence of both the pristine and oxidized phases suggest formation of two distinct phases upon charging, consistent with a two-phase desodiation mechanism. This two-phase arrangement of Na ions persists for multiple charge/discharge cycles and is congruent with high reversibility of Na (de)intercalation in Na 2 FePO 4 F cathodes. These findings imply that the Na 2 FePO 4 F framework is incredibly structurally stable with a robust intercalation process, despite a lack of ideal sodium-ion kinetics.

6 Li selective inversion NMR experiments are used to reveal Li ion exchange rates and energy barriers for Li ion hopping in monoclinic Li 3 Fe 2 (PO 4 ) 3 . The three crystallographically unique Li sites in this material are well resolved by magic-angle spinning, thus allowing for the examination of all three exchange processes. We have revisited this material using selective inversion to probe dynamics, and energy barriers over the temperature range 268−397 K are found to be 0.37 ± 0.07, 0.53 ± 0.02, and 0.52 ± 0.03 eV for the three unique exchange pairs. The results presented here are consistent with the known Li 3 Fe 2 (PO 4 ) 3 crystal structure. The selective inversion experiment is more robust than 2D EXSY for the determination of energy barriers by NMR; this can be attributed to the efficiency of the onedimensional technique, and an exchange model that accounts for multisite exchange and fast spin−lattice relaxation. Moreover, bond valence sum density maps provide a meaningful depiction of lithium ion diffusion pathways in this material that complement the NMR results.

The development and engineering of new materials for modern electrochemical energy-storage systems requires an in-depth understanding of Li-ion dynamics, not only on the macroscopic length scale but also from an atomic-scale point of view. Hence, the study of suitable model systems is indispensable to understand the complexity of nonmodel systems already applied, for example, as active materials in rechargeable batteries. Here, Li2SnO3 served as such a model system to enlighten the elementary steps of ion hopping between the three magnetically distinct Li sites. Through high-resolution 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopies, we probed the favored exchange pathway. Both 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopies point to nonuniform ion dynamics and two independent exchange processes perpendicular to the ab plane, namely, between the sites 4e [Li(3)] and 8f [Li(1)] and between 4e and 4d [Li(2)]. 6Li selective-inversion NMR spectroscopy confirmed extremely slow Li exchange and yielded hopping rates on the order of 3 s–1 for 4e–8f and 0.7 s–1 for 4e–4d. Altogether, the findings provide evidence for a three-site, two-exchange model describing Li hopping along the c axis rather than in the Li-rich ab plane as one would expect at first glance. This unexpected result can, however, be understood when the site preference of Li vacancies is considered. Recent theoretical calculations predicted the preferred formation of Li vacancies at the Li(3) sites. This allows for localized Li-ion exchange involving Li(3), thus, perfectly corroborating the present findings obtained by 6Li MAS NMR spectroscopy.

Here we describe the selective inversion methodology for quantifying the rates of site-specific ion exchange in materials such as lithium ion battery cathode frameworks. This strategy is shown to be robust in the presence of paramagnetic centers and viable and efficient for the evaluation of hopping rates, in spite of varying initial conditions for the NMR experiment. This is contrasted with 2D EXSY methodology, and selective inversion is shown to be preferable for a number of reasons articulated herein. Work in this area in our group was guided by insights into chemical exchange processes provide by our friend and colleague, Prof. Alex D. Bain. We dedicate this short review to him.cathode materials, chemical exchange, CIFIT, ion dynamics, selective inversion