Advisor: Professor Meilin Liu
will defend a master thesis entitled,
Mechanochemical Transformation from Zigzag-Type Layered/Phenakite to Disordered Rocksalt in Mn-Rich Cathodes for Li-Ion Batteries
On
Friday, April 03, 2026
10:00 am - 12:00 pm
J. Erskine Love Building
Classroom 183
or virtually via Zoom:
Committee:
Professor Meilin Liu - School of Materials Science and Engineering (advisor)
Professor Hailong Chen - School of Materials Science and Engineering
Doctor Yong Ding - School of Materials Science and Engineering
Abstract:
Understanding how cation disorder develops in Mn-rich disordered rocksalt (DRX) systems—particularly under mechanochemical activation—has been hindered by limited insight into the underlying transformation pathways. Here, we uncover a distinct transformation route in Li1.2Mn(2+x)/3Mo(0.4-x)/3O2-xFx (LMMOFx), in which Mo and F co-doping drives the material toward a zigzag-type layered/phenakite mixed structure. This co-doped mixed phase undergoes pronounced local structural reconstruction, which promotes DRX formation and induces a transition from a two-phase Mn redox mechanism to a stable single-phase process, delivering a high reversible capacity of 297.9 mAh g-1. Systematic structural and electrochemical comparisons across the LMMOF series further reveal how progressive disorder and phase mixing reshape Li-ion transport pathways. Together, these results establish a mechanistic framework for leveraging dopant- and structure-controlled precursor chemistry to direct mechanochemical DRX formation, and they offer a design principle for earth-abundant, Mn-rich DRX cathodes with tunable disorder.
]]>