Characteristics of LiMO2 (M = Co, Ni, Ni0.2Co0.8, Ni0.8Co0.2) powders prepared from solution of their acetates

Stoichiometric quantities of the acetates of lithium, cobalt and nickel were dissolved in distilled water and stirred with a magnetic stirrer. After complete dissolution was obtained, the solutions were heated at 120 °C under continuous stirring until some dark colored powder materials were formed. These precursor materials were divided into three batches and heated at 250 °C (for 24 h), 370 °C (for 24 h) and 800 °C for 10 h. The precursor and calcined samples were X-rayed. The X-ray diffractograms for the prepared samples were compared to that of commercialized samples and those published in the literature. The Bragg peak with Miller indices (0 0 3) in the diffractogram of the LiNi0.8Co0.2O2 prepared sample showed a lower intensity compared to the (1 0 4) peak. The ratio of the (0 0 3) to (1 0 4) peaks for the LiNi0.2Co0.8O2 sample is 1.56. Lattice parameters showed that the LiCoO2 and LiNi0.2Co0.8O2 samples produced by the method in the present investigation have potential to exhibit good electrochemical performance when used as electrodes in lithium ion batteries.