Detailed explanation of the classification and development trend of lithium battery anode materials

Among the four major materials for lithium batteries, the technology of anode materials is relatively the most mature. Generally, lithium battery anode materials are divided into two categories: carbon materials and non-carbon materials. Among them, carbon materials are divided into graphite and amorphous carbon, such as natural graphite, artificial graphite, mesophase carbon microspheres, soft carbon (such as coke) and some hard carbon, etc.; other non-carbon anode materials include nitrides, silicon-based materials, Tin-based materials, titanium-based materials, alloy materials, etc. Lithium battery anode materials are at the core of the middle reaches of the lithium battery industry. According to battery cost distribution, lithium battery anode materials and other materials account for about 28% of the total cost of lithium batteries. A good negative electrode material should meet the following requirements: high specific energy and low electrode potential relative to lithium electrodes; good reversibility of charge and discharge reactions; good compatibility with electrolytes and binders; small specific surface area (<10m2/g); High tap density (>2.0g/cm3); good size and mechanical stability during lithium insertion; abundant resources and low price; stable in the air, non-toxic and side-use. At present, the most important are mesophase carbon microspheres (MCMB), natural graphite (NGR) and hard carbon (HC). Almost all anode materials have been industrialized in China. At present, the domestic output of anode materials is also relatively large, which can basically meet the needs of the domestic market. According to a survey conducted by the Advanced Industrial Research Institute (GGII), my country’s anode material output was 72,800 tons in 2015, an increase of 42.7% year-on-year; the domestic anode material output value was 3.88 billion yuan, an increase of 35.2% year-on-year. In 2015, the average price of anode materials continued to decline, ranging from 5% to 10%. Although the price has dropped as a whole, the growth rate of the output value of the negative electrode material is close to that of the output because the structure of the negative electrode material is changing. Driven by power lithium-ion batteries, the fastest increase in domestic demand for anode materials in 2015 was artificial graphite, and the average price of artificial graphite was higher than that of natural graphite. In the total global anode material shipments, natural graphite accounted for 55%, artificial graphite accounted for 35%, mesocarbon microspheres accounted for 7.4%, and lithium titanate, zinc, and silicon combined accounted for about 1%. Taken together, graphite anode materials account for 90% of total shipments. From a global perspective, the current lithium battery anode material processing companies are closely located in my country and Japan. my country's advantage is graphite resources, and Japan's advantage is technology. The negative electrode material product market presents a clear oligopoly pattern. The high degree of agglomeration of the negative electrode material market determines the relative stability of the industry’s profitability. However, the accumulation of domestic production will result in a slight decline in product prices. New anode materials such as silicon alloy and lithium titanate are expected to greatly improve product performance. With the rapid rise of lithium battery vehicles and energy storage, due to the high cost performance of graphite anodes, graphite anode materials will continue to be the mainstream in the next 2 to 3 years, and we expect production to maintain an annual increase of about 20%. Natural graphite is mainly used in digital products and notebook computers. Artificial graphite is mostly used in transportation, and its rising speed will be higher than that of negative electrode materials. The rise of natural graphite will be lower than that of the negative electrode material. Technically, the performance of graphite anode materials gradually tends to the theoretical value. For example, the gram capacity of graphite is 372mAh/g. At present, some manufacturers' products can reach 365mAh/g. Due to processing technology and inherent defects, this has basically reached the limit value. Disclaimer: Some pictures and content of articles published on this site are from the Internet. If there is any infringement, please contact to delete. Previous: Why does Tesla choose 18650 batteries?