Effect of Intermediate-Range Structure on Negative Electrode Properties of Wadsley–Roth Phase Ti<sub>2</sub>Nb<sub>10</sub>O<sub>29</sub> (Supporting Information)
<div>This study focused on Wadsley–Roth phase Ti<sub>2</sub>Nb<sub>10</sub>O<sub>29</sub> as a negative electrode material for lithium-ion batteries. We investigated the effect of a network consisting of corner-sharing octahedra, which form a conduction pathway for Li<sup>+</sup>, on the electrode properties. Charge/discharge cycle tests showed that the capacity of Ti<sub>2</sub>Nb<sub>10</sub>O<sub>29</sub> was significantly reduced by ball milling. Because the treatment broadens the Bragg peaks in the diffraction pattern, the poor electrode properties of the ball-milled sample are considered to be due to the disordered atomic configuration. To investigate the structural disorder in more detail, we performed total scattering and X-ray absorption fine structure measurements and analyzed the intermediate-range structure. The results reveal that ball milling significantly disrupts the octahedral network, indicating a disordered conduction pathway for Li<sup>+</sup>. It is also demonstrated that the subsequent heat treatment after ball milling alleviates the disorder in the intermediate-range structure and improves the electrode properties.</div>
Funding
Development of synthetic process based on library of super-ordered structural materials for social implementation