Electrochemical characterization of Ti-Si and Ti-Si-Al alloy anodes for Li-ion batteries produced by mechanical ball milling

Alloys of Ti-Si and Ti-Si-Al were produced by mechanical milling. The alloys were prepared by ball milling the pieces of prealloyed melt-spun ribbons or mechanical alloying from elemental powder mixture. The influence of the milling time on the electrochemical performance of the alloys as anode in lithium-ion batteries was investigated. It appears that a critical milling time is required to attain good cycle performance. However, prolonged milling results in the reduction of reversible capacity. For Ti28Si72 alloy showing good cycling stability with small capacity, the partial substitution of Ti with Al enhances the reversible capacity with comparable cycle performance. The factors attributable to the better cyclability are discussed.