The effect of MgO coating on Li1.17Mn0.48Ni0.23Co0.12O2 cathode material for lithium ion batteries

•Less cobalt content and no protection in manufacturing process save the cost.•No Ar or N2 in hydroxide co-precipitation means potential for large scale synthesis.•MgO is successfully coated on Li-rich layered oxide material with a new ratio.•MgO coatings improve the discharge capacity and cycle capability of pristine oxide.

MgO-coated Li1.17Mn0.48Ni0.23Co0.12O2 was synthesized via co-precipitation method followed by a solid state reaction at 500 °C. The particle morphology and crystal structure features were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The electrochemical properties of samples were monitored by galvanostatic charge and discharge cycling test, electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS) test and cyclic voltammetry (CV) test. In contrast, 2 wt.% MgO-coated cathode material shows better cyclic performance than others. The Li1.17Mn0.48Ni0.23Co0.12O2/2%MgO oxide delivers an initial discharge capacity of 260.3 mAh g −1 between 2.0 V and 4.8 V at 0.1 C-rate (1 C-rate = 358 mA g −1), and has a capacity retention of 99.5% after 10 cycles at 0.1 C-rate.