Crystallite size and lattice strain of lithiated spinel material for rechargeable battery by X-ray diffraction peak-broadening analysis

Abstract

Summary High‐energy ball milling is performed on Li1.1Mn1.95Fe0.05O4 spinel material, synthesized by sol‐gel method for lithium rechargeable battery, at different durations to obtain nanopowders of finite size distributions. The powders are investigated by means of scanning electron microscopy, particle size distribution, and X‐ray diffraction (XRD) measurements. The structural analysis of the powders is performed to investigate the effect of milling on the particle size, crystallite size, and lattice strain. The scanning electron micrographs and size distribution measurements show that the particle size decreases with the increase in milling duration. The XRD results show that the widths of the diffraction peaks increase with the decrease of particle size (increase of milling duration). This broadening is analyzed according to Scherrer, Williamson‐Hall, and Halder‐Wagner methods. Peak broadening is attributed to contributions of crystallite size and lattice strain. While reducing the particle and crystallite sizes is desirable to achieve higher specific capacity and energy density of the battery active material, lattice strain leads to material degradation and a reduced capacity retention. Thus, when performing mechanical milling, lattice strain should be taken seriously into consideration to optimize the milling parameters and to enhance the materials electrochemical performance.

Strain and Grain Size Determination of CeO2 and TiO2 Nanoparticles: Comparing Integral Breadth Methods versus Rietveld, μ-Raman, and TEM

“…By comparing the results of the crystallite size and lattice ε , shown in Table 1 , we could see that the H–W method showed a decrease in the crystallite size. A common feature between the W–H and H–W methods was that the dispersion of data points increased with increased lattice ε , which would indicate that lattice ε was anisotropic [ 31 ]. However, in our case, we saw a decrease in the dispersion of the points and also an increase in , suggesting that lattice ε was isotropic in nature.…”

“Less is More′′: Ultra Low LiPF6 Concentrated Electrolyte for Efficient Li‐Ion Batteries

“…The cycled electrodes reveal a slight angle shift and peak broadening, suggesting modest structural changes (i. e., contributions of crystallite size and lattice strain, the latter hinting to material degradation and in turn, reduced capacity retention). [62] The intensity of the (111) peak is the strongest (Figure S17a), corroborated by the I(111)/I(311) ratio of the cycled electrode being 1.5 times higher…”

Photodegradation of Methylene Blue and Evans Blue by Iron and Sulphur Doped TiO2 Nanophotocatalyst under Ultraviolet and Visible Light Irradiation

“…where M is the molecular weight, n is the number of atoms associated with each unit tetragonal cell, a and c are lattice constants, L is the doped TiO2 nanocrystallite size, V is the volume of the spherical nanocrystallites ( Dislocation affects the crystallite size and lattice strain (ɛ) by broadening the diffraction peaks [62]. The dislocation density (δ) is defined as the number of defects in the crystalline lattice that could be estimated by the experimental relationship with crystallite size from the below formula: According to the W-H method, peak broadening is due to the contribution of the crystallite size induced and lattice strain-induced.…”

“…A more accurate assessment of the size-strain parameters can be carried out by considering an average size-strain plot (SSP). The Halder-Wagner (H-W) method considers the crystallite size and strain profiles as a Lorentzian and a Gaussian function, respectively [62]. According to the SSP method, less importance (weight factor) is given to the data that comes from the high-angles than the low and mid-angles that have more accuracy [62].…”