JP2015125826A - Negative electrode active material for nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery and method for producing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a negative electrode active material for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery, with which a negative electrode of a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery that has low volume resistance and lower irreversible capacity can be manufactured.SOLUTION: A negative electrode active material for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery is represented by an elemental composition formula: Met-Si-O-C-H (where, Metrepresents one of alkali earth metal elements or a mixture thereof.), and contains silicate comprising a silicon based inorganic compound and the alkali earth metal.

Description

  The present invention relates to a negative electrode active material for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery and a method for producing the same. The present invention also relates to a negative electrode for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery using the negative electrode active material, and a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery using the negative electrode.

In recent years, with the remarkable development of portable electronic devices, communication devices, etc., there is a strong demand for non-aqueous electrolyte secondary batteries with high energy density from the viewpoints of economy and downsizing and weight reduction of devices. Conventionally, as a measure for increasing the capacity of this type of non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, for example, negative electrode materials such as oxides such as B, Ti, V, Mn, Co, Fe, Ni, Cr, Nb, and Mo and composites thereof A method using an oxide (see, for example, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2), M _100-x Si _x (x ≧ 50 at%, M = Ni, Fe, Co, Mn) quenched with molten metal is applied as a negative electrode material. A method (Patent Document 3), a method using silicon oxide as a negative electrode material (Patent Document 4), a method using Si ₂ N ₂ O, Ge ₂ N ₂ O, and Sn ₂ N ₂ O as a negative electrode material (Patent Document 5), etc. It has been known.

Since silicon shows a theoretical capacity of 3580 mAh / g, which is much higher than the theoretical capacity of 372 mAh / g of carbon materials currently in practical use, it is the most promising material for reducing the size and increasing the capacity of batteries. Various forms of silicon having different crystal structures are known depending on the production method. For example, Patent Document 6 discloses a lithium ion secondary battery using single crystal silicon as a negative electrode active material support, and Patent Document 7 discloses Li _x Si of single crystal silicon, polycrystalline silicon, and amorphous silicon. A lithium ion secondary battery using a lithium alloy (where x is 0 to 5) is disclosed, and Li _x Si using amorphous silicon is particularly preferable, and silane gas is coated with amorphous silicon obtained by plasma decomposition. The pulverized crystalline silicon is exemplified.

  In addition, for the purpose of imparting conductivity to the negative electrode material, a method in which a metal oxide such as silicon oxide and graphite are mechanically alloyed and then carbonized (Patent Document 8), and the surface of Si particles is carbonized by chemical vapor deposition. There are a method of coating with a layer (Patent Document 9) and a method of coating the surface of silicon oxide particles with a carbon layer by a chemical vapor deposition method (Patent Document 10). In these methods, the conductivity can be improved by providing a carbon layer on the particle surface, but the large volume change accompanying charging / discharging, which is a problem to be overcome by the silicon negative electrode, is reduced. Degradation and cycle deterioration could not be prevented.

Therefore, in recent years, as a method for suppressing the volume expansion by limiting the battery capacity utilization rate of silicon (Patent Documents 9, 11 to 13), or a method using a grain boundary of polycrystalline particles as a buffer zone for volume change, alumina is used. Method of rapidly cooling a silicon melt added with Pt (Patent Document 14), a method using polycrystalline particles made of a mixed phase polycrystal of α, β-FeSi ₂ (Patent Document 15), high-temperature plastic working of a single crystal silicon ingot (Patent Document 16) is disclosed.

  A method of reducing volume expansion by devising a laminated structure of a silicon active material is also disclosed. For example, a method of disposing a silicon negative electrode in two layers (Patent Document 17), coating or capsules with carbon, other metals, and oxides And a method for suppressing particle collapse (Patent Documents 18 to 24) is disclosed. In addition, in a method of directly vapor-phase-growing silicon on a current collector, a method of suppressing deterioration of cycle characteristics due to volume expansion by controlling the growth direction is also disclosed (Patent Document 25).

  As described above, silicon, silicon alloys, and silicon oxides have been studied as negative electrode active materials. However, volume change due to insertion and extraction of Li is sufficiently suppressed, and it is possible to mitigate the decrease in conductivity due to pulverization due to particle cracking and peeling from the current collector, and mass production. However, a negative electrode active material that is possible and cost-effective and can be used practically has not been proposed yet.

  On the other hand, it is disclosed that a composite oxide composed of an element of SiOC produced by sintering methylsiloxanes such as silane, silicone oil or silicone resin at a high temperature has a charge / discharge capacity (Patent Documents 26 to 29). . These discharge capacities are about 500 mAh / g, but the cycle characteristics are good. However, the irreversible capacity is remarkably high and the discharge curve changes linearly, so that the energy density is not improved. For this reason, a method for eliminating irreversible capacity by adding metal Li to the complex oxide and causing it to react chemically, or by adding metal silicon having a low irreversible capacity to increase battery capacity, capacity per weight. It has been proposed to improve efficiency (Patent Documents 30 and 31). However, even these methods have not been able to exhibit sufficient characteristics to be put to practical use.

Japanese Patent No. 3008228 Japanese Patent No. 3242751 Japanese Patent No. 3846661 Japanese Patent No. 2999741 Japanese Patent No. 3918311 Japanese Patent No. 2964732 Japanese Patent No. 3079343 JP 2000-243396 A JP 2000-215887 A JP 2002-42806 A JP 2000-173596 A Japanese Patent No. 3291260 JP 2005-317309 A JP 2003-109590 A JP 2004-185991 A JP 2004-303593 A JP 2005-190902 A JP 2005-235589 A JP 2006-216374 A JP 2006-236684 A JP 2006-339092 A Japanese Patent No. 3622629 JP 2002-75351 A Japanese Patent No. 3622631 JP 2006-338996 A JP-A-8-40716 JP-A-8-259213 JP-A-10-74506 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-74520 Japanese Patent No. 4623283 Japanese Patent No. 5003877

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery as a negative electrode of a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery having a low volume resistivity and a small irreversible capacity, such as An object of the present invention is to provide a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery using a negative electrode active material as a negative electrode material, and to provide a method for producing a negative electrode active material capable of producing such a negative electrode active material.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides non-water represented by the elemental composition formula Met ¹ -Si—O—C—H (wherein Met ¹ is one or a mixture of alkaline earth metal elements). There is provided a negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, characterized in that it is a negative electrode active material for an electrolyte secondary battery and contains a silicate composed of a silicon-based inorganic compound and the alkaline earth metal.

  By using such a negative electrode active material as a negative electrode material for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery, the volume resistivity is low and the irreversible capacity can be small. In addition, the negative electrode active material can have high storage stability when it is in the state of an electrode paste for producing an electrode.

  In this case, the alkaline earth metal element is preferably Mg or Ca.

  Thus, by using Mg or Ca as the alkaline earth metal element, when the negative electrode active material is used as the negative electrode material for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery, the irreversible capacity can be further reduced.

  Further, it is preferable that fine particles made of silicon, silicon alloy or silicon oxide are dispersed in the silicate.

  Thus, by dispersing fine particles made of silicon, a silicon alloy, or silicon oxide in a silicate, a negative electrode active material having a higher capacity and a higher energy density can be obtained.

  In addition, it is preferable that the silicate further contains a Group 3 to Group 13 metal. In this case, the Group 3 to Group 13 metal is preferably the first transition metal or the second transition metal.

  Thus, the irreversible capacity | capacitance of a negative electrode active material can be reduced effectively by adding a group 3-13 metal, especially a 1st transition metal or a 2nd transition metal with an alkaline-earth metal further.

  In addition, carbon particles may be dispersed in the silicate.

  Thus, when the carbon particles are dispersed, the volume resistivity can be further lowered when the negative electrode active material is used as a negative electrode material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery.

  Moreover, this invention provides the negative electrode for nonaqueous electrolyte secondary batteries characterized by using any of the negative electrode active materials for nonaqueous electrolyte secondary batteries described above.

  The present invention also provides a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery using the above negative electrode for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery.

  Such a negative electrode for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery and a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery using the negative electrode active material of the present invention can have a low volume resistivity and a small irreversible capacity.

  The present invention also includes a step of mixing an alkaline earth metal compound and a composition containing a curable organic silicon compound to form a raw material mixture, and curing the curable organic silicon compound to cure the raw material mixture. There is provided a method for producing a negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, comprising: a step of performing and a step of firing the cured raw material mixture to mineralize the curable organosilicon compound.

  In this way, a negative electrode active material containing a silicate composed of a silicon-based inorganic compound and an alkaline earth metal is manufactured by mixing each raw material in advance and manufacturing the negative electrode active material by curing and firing the mixture. can do. By using such a negative electrode active material as a negative electrode material for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery, the volume resistivity is low and the irreversible capacity can be small. In addition, the negative electrode active material can have high storage stability when it is in the state of an electrode paste for producing an electrode.

  In this case, it is preferable that the raw material mixture is further mixed with fine particles made of silicon, a silicon alloy or silicon oxide.

  Thus, these fine particles can be dispersed in the negative electrode active material to be produced by mixing fine particles made of silicon, a silicon alloy or silicon oxide into the raw material mixture.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the raw material mixture is further mixed with a Group 3 to Group 13 metal compound.

  Thus, by mixing a Group 3-13 metal compound with a raw material mixture, the Group 3-13 metal can be uniformly contained in the silicate of the negative electrode active material to manufacture.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the raw material mixture is further mixed with carbon particles. In this case, the carbon particles can be made of natural graphite, synthetic graphite, or carbon fiber.

  Thus, carbon particles can be dispersed in the negative electrode active material to be produced by mixing carbon particles with the raw material mixture.

  The negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery of the present invention can be used as a negative electrode material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, so that the volume resistivity is low and the irreversible capacity is small. In addition, the negative electrode active material of the present invention generates little decomposition gas of the electrolytic solution, and since the collapse of the electrode due to volume expansion is mitigated, it is possible to give good cycle characteristics. Moreover, the negative electrode active material of the present invention can have high storage stability when it is in the state of an electrode paste for producing an electrode.

  Moreover, the negative electrode active material which has the said structure can be manufactured with the manufacturing method of the negative electrode active material for nonaqueous electrolyte secondary batteries of this invention.

4 is a powder X-ray diffraction spectrum of the particles obtained in Example 3 and Example 11. FIG. It is a Raman spectrum of the particle surface of the particles obtained in Example 3 and Example 11. It is a cross-sectional scanning electron microscope image of the particle | grains obtained in Example 10, The location which attached the "+" mark on the upper left in the figure has shown the metal silicon particle. It is the graph which evaluated the cycle characteristic of Example 13, 14, 23, 24 and the comparative example 7. FIG.

  As described above, composite oxides composed of SiOC elements have a drawback that their irreversible capacity is extremely high as a negative electrode active material. In addition, the composite oxide composed of the element of SiOC has a problem that the energy density is not improved because the discharge curve changes linearly.

  The present inventors have intensively studied to solve this problem. As a result, in the method of improving the battery capacity and increasing the initial efficiency by adding metal silicon to a known material Si—O—C material, a large amount of metal silicon is added to relatively reduce the irreversible capacity. Therefore, it was found that volume expansion, which is a defect of metallic silicon, was remarkably exhibited and not suitable for practical use. On the other hand, in the method of increasing the initial efficiency by adding metallic lithium, handling of ignitable metallic lithium is a problem, and by increasing the amount of metallic lithium added, the battery capacity inherent in Si—O—C is reduced. It was also found that the average potential is low and the energy density remains low as shown in the discharge curve.

  The present inventors have further studied based on the above knowledge, and the effect of reducing the volume change at the time of charge and discharge, which is a problem with a silicon-based negative electrode active material, which has a smaller irreversible capacity, a higher energy density, and In order to obtain an effective silicon composite as an active agent for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery negative electrode, the negative electrode active material of the present invention and a method for producing the same are found as means for increasing the energy density without impairing the battery capacity. It was.

  Although the present invention is expected as a negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, its charge / discharge capacity is several times that of the current mainstream graphite-based materials, while it is repetitive. The present invention provides a negative electrode active material comprising a silicon composite in which the cycle performance and charge / discharge efficiency of a silicon-based negative electrode material, which has become a major bottleneck in performance deterioration due to charge / discharge, are provided.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail.

The negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery of the present invention is represented by an elemental composition formula Met ¹ -Si—O—C—H. Met ¹ in the elemental composition formula is one or a mixture of alkaline earth metal elements. The negative electrode active material includes a silicate composed of a silicon-based inorganic compound and the alkaline earth metal. The alkaline earth metal element used here is preferably Mg or Ca. Moreover, in the negative electrode active material of this invention, it is preferable that a silicate contains a Group 3-13 metal further. The Group 3 to Group 13 metal is more preferably a first transition metal or a second transition metal. In the negative electrode active material of the present invention, carbon particles can be further dispersed in the silicate.

  In the negative electrode active material of the present invention, the silicon-based inorganic compound forms a silicate with an alkaline earth metal (or alkaline earth metal and group 3 to group 13 element). With such a configuration, it is possible to provide a SiOC-based negative electrode active material having a low volume resistivity and a low irreversible capacity.

  Moreover, this negative electrode active material has high storage stability when it is in the state of an electrode paste for producing an electrode, and is highly practical. According to the knowledge of the present inventors, the Si—O—C composite added with Li is inferior in storage stability when used as an electrode paste as compared with the negative electrode active material added with alkaline earth metal as in the present invention. . As long as the alkaline earth metal used in the present invention is a group 2 element, the effects of the present invention can be obtained, but Mg or Ca is particularly preferable.

  In the negative electrode active material of the present invention, it is preferable that fine particles made of silicon, a silicon alloy or silicon oxide (hereinafter collectively referred to simply as “silicon fine particles”) are dispersed in the silicate. . In this case, in the negative electrode active material (silicon complex) of the present invention, the silicon-based fine particles function as an active material, and the silicate in which the silicon-based fine particles are dispersed also functions as the active material. In this way, by adopting a structure in which silicon-based fine particles are dispersed in silicate, the battery capacity is large and the discharge curve is flat, so that a negative electrode active material having a high energy density can be obtained.

  The negative electrode active material of the present invention is preferably in the form of particles whose primary particles have a volume average particle diameter of 0.1 to 30 μm.

  Such a negative electrode active material of the present invention can be obtained by mixing and sintering an alkaline earth metal compound and a composition containing a curable organosilicon compound.

Specifically, the method for producing a negative electrode active material of the present invention undergoes at least the following processes (a) to (c).
(A) An alkaline earth metal compound and a composition containing a curable organosilicon compound are mixed to obtain a raw material mixture.
(B) The curable organosilicon compound is cured to cure the raw material mixture.
(C) Firing the cured raw material mixture to mineralize the curable organosilicon compound.

  The curable organosilicon compound used in the present invention is preferably a curable silicone composition that is a composition of a reactive organosilicon compound having a crosslinkable group. The kind in particular of curable silicone composition is not restrict | limited, A well-known curable silicone composition can be used. Specific examples thereof include organic peroxide curable, radiation curable reactivity, addition curable reactive type, and condensation curable silicone compositions. In terms of making the silicon-based inorganic compound obtained by firing and mineralization high purity, organic peroxide-curable and radiation-curable reactive silicone compositions are advantageous. The total content of impurity elements in the inorganic inorganic compound powder can be suppressed to 1 ppm or less, preferably 0.5 ppm or less, and more preferably 0.1 ppm or less. Examples of the impurity element include Fe, Cr, Ni, Al, Ti, Cu, Na, Zn, Ca, Zr, Mg, and B, and the total content thereof can be suppressed as described above. About alkaline earth metal elements such as Ca, Mg, etc. are mixed in the raw material mixture as described above, but in order to suppress impurities other than alkaline earth metal elements in the curable organosilicon compound, the above Thus, it is preferable that the curable organosilicon compound has a high purity. In other words, it is difficult to reduce only impurities other than the alkaline earth metal element from the curable organic silicon oxide.

  Examples of the organic peroxide curable silicone composition include a linear chain having an alkenyl group such as a vinyl group at one or both of a molecular chain terminal part (one terminal or both terminal) and a molecular chain non-terminal part. A silicone composition that cures by radical polymerization of an organopolysiloxane in the presence of an organic peroxide can be given.

  Examples of the radiation curable silicone composition include an ultraviolet curable silicone composition and an electron beam curable silicone composition.

  As an ultraviolet curable silicone composition, the silicone composition hardened | cured with the energy of the ultraviolet-ray with a wavelength of 200-400 nm is mentioned, for example. In this case, the curing mechanism is not particularly limited. Specific examples thereof include an acrylic silicone composition containing an organopolysiloxane having an acryloyl group or a methacryloyl group and a photopolymerization initiator, a mercapto group-containing organopolysiloxane and an organopolysiloxane having an alkenyl group such as a vinyl group. And a photopolymerization initiator containing a mercapto-vinyl addition polymerization silicone composition, an addition reaction silicone composition using the same platinum group metal catalyst as a thermosetting addition reaction type, and an epoxy group-containing organopoly A cationically polymerizable silicone composition containing siloxane and an onium salt catalyst can be used, and any of them can be used as an ultraviolet curable silicone composition.

  As the electron beam curable silicone composition, any silicone composition that is cured by radical polymerization that starts by irradiating an electron beam to an organopolysiloxane having a radical polymerizable group can be used.

  For example, the addition-curable silicone composition is cured by a reaction (hydrosilylation addition reaction) in the presence of the above-described linear organopolysiloxane having an alkenyl group, an organohydrogenpolysiloxane, and a platinum group metal catalyst. The silicone composition to be mentioned can be mentioned.

  As the condensation curable silicone composition, for example, a silanol-blocked organopolysiloxane at both ends and an organohydrogenpolysiloxane or a hydrolyzable silane such as tetraalkoxysilane or organotrialkoxysilane and / or a partially hydrolyzed condensate thereof are used. Silicone compositions that are cured by reacting in the presence of a condensation reaction catalyst such as an organotin catalyst, or both ends are trialkoxy groups, dialkoxyorgano groups, trialkoxysiloxyethyl groups, dialkoxyorganosiloxyethyl groups, etc. Examples thereof include a silicone composition that is cured by reacting the blocked organopolysiloxane in the presence of a condensation reaction such as an organotin catalyst.

  However, a radiation curable silicone composition and an organic peroxide curable silicone composition are desirable from the viewpoint of avoiding mixing of impurity elements as much as possible.

  The irreversible capacity is effectively reduced by adding an alkaline earth metal compound in the step (b) before the step of curing the composition of the curable organosilicon compound, that is, in the step (a). be able to. At this time, the addition of a metal compound such as a Group 3 to Group 13 metal can further reduce the irreversible capacity. As the alkaline earth metal compound to be added, a metal compound such as an alkaline earth metal hydroxide, oxide, carbonate, or oxalate is preferably used because of its reactivity with the curable silicone composition. In particular, use of carbonate or oxalate such as Mg or Ca is preferable because it can effectively react at the temperature at which the silicon composite is formed. These alkaline earth metal compounds are easier to handle than when a single metal is used. The Group 3 to Group 13 metal can be introduced by blending a first transition metal such as Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Ga with a metal compound such as Al. Similarly, a second transition metal such as Zr, Nb, or Mo may be used. Various metal compounds can be selected in the same manner, but hydroxides, oxides, esterified products and the like are preferable from the viewpoint of reactivity.

  The total amount of the alkaline earth metal compound or the alkaline earth metal compound and the group 3 to group 13 metal compound is 10 to 100 parts by mass with respect to 150 parts by mass of the curable organosilicon compound composition. Preferably there is. The blending amount is more preferably 20 to 80 parts by mass, and particularly preferably 30 to 60 parts by mass, from the viewpoint of irreversible capacity reduction effect and economy.

  In the step (b), before the step of curing the composition of the curable organosilicon compound, that is, in the step (a), it is preferable to further mix fine particles made of silicon, a silicon alloy or silicon oxide. . Thus, by mixing silicon-based fine particles with the raw material mixture and firing in step (b), the silicon-based fine particles can be dispersed in the silicate, and a higher-capacity silicon composite can be obtained.

  As silicon which can be used here, industrial metallic silicon having a purity of 95% or more (ie, 95 to 100%), particularly 99.0% or more (ie, 99.0 to 100%), for semiconductors or Examples thereof include polycrystalline silicon for solar cells and single crystal silicon. In addition, a silicon alloy in which typical elements such as Al, Ti, Co, Fe, and transition metals are added to such silicon can also be used in the present invention. The silicon oxide is represented by the general formula SiOx (1 ≦ x <1.6), and is heat-treated in an inert gas atmosphere from an amorphous material to disproportionate into silicon and silicon dioxide. The resulting silicon oxide can also be used. Further, the surface of silicon particles, silicon alloy particles, or silicon oxide particles may be subjected to water repellency treatment with alkoxymethylsilane or alkoxyvinylsilane, or may be coated with carbon.

These silicon, silicon alloys, the size of the primary particles of silicon oxide, the volume average particle diameter in particle size distribution measurement method by laser diffraction method (e.g., particle diameter D ₅₀ or median size of which cumulative volume is 50%) is 100nm It is preferable that it is 10-10 micrometers. The particle diameter is more preferably from 100 nm to 7 μm, further preferably from 100 nm to 1 μm. In particular, the particle diameter is preferably uniform.

  The blending ratio of silicon, silicon alloy or silicon oxide and the composition of the curable organic silicon compound is 5 parts by mass or more of silicon, silicon alloy or silicon oxide with respect to 150 parts by mass of the composition of the curable organic silicon compound. Preferably, it is 10 parts by mass or more. On the other hand, as an upper limit, it is preferable that silicon, a silicon alloy, or a silicon oxide is 200 mass parts or less with respect to 100 mass parts of a composition of a curable organosilicon compound, It is more preferable that it is 100 mass parts or less, 50 It is particularly preferable that the amount is not more than part by mass. These preferable upper limit values take into consideration that when curable silicone is used as the curable organosilicon compound, the loss on heating after sintering is about 30% by mass.

  Carbon particles may be further added before the step of curing the composition of the curable organosilicon compound in the step (b), that is, at the step of the step (a). The carbon particles to be added may be a conductive aid such as graphite or acetylene black. In particular, it is preferably made of any one of natural graphite, synthetic graphite, and carbon fiber. As a mixture ratio, it is preferable that it is 1 mass part or more with respect to 150 mass parts of compositions of a curable organosilicon compound, More preferably, it is 5 mass parts or more. Within this range, the volume resistivity of the fired silicon composite can be effectively reduced, and the rate characteristics of the active material can be improved.

  The raw material mixture obtained by mixing is cured (step (b)). The curing conditions may be performed under the conditions for curing the curable organosilicon compound according to the curable organosilicon compound used as described above. After the curing in step (b) is completed, the cured product is preferably pulverized before firing in step (c).

  After the alkaline earth metal compound and the composition containing the curable organosilicon compound are mixed and cured in steps (a) and (b), the cured raw material mixture is baked to make the curable organosilicon compound inorganic. (Step (c)). The firing temperature is preferably 600 to 1200 ° C. Since the reaction proceeds rapidly at about 600 ° C. and almost completes at around 1000 ° C., the firing temperature is more preferably set to 600 to 1000 ° C. In addition, the firing temperature is preferably 1200 ° C. or lower in order not to generate silicon carbide as a resistance component. Although it does not specifically limit as a heating apparatus, What is necessary is just to be able to heat in inert gas atmosphere, such as a muffle furnace and a rotary kiln. In addition, since hydrogen gas, a carbon dioxide gas, carbon monoxide gas, etc. generate | occur | produce during reaction, it is preferable to attach these exclusion apparatuses. The reaction time varies depending on the charged amount and the reaction apparatus, but can be completed in about 1 hour at 1000 ° C.

  After firing, it is preferable that the fired product is pulverized and adjusted so as to have an appropriate particle size as the negative electrode active material.

When the silicon composite obtained by the above blending is represented by an elemental composition formula, Met ¹ —Si—O—C—H (where Met ¹ is one or a mixture of alkaline earth metal elements) is obtained. The composition ratio of each element when the _{^{Met 1 k -Si-O l -C}} m -H n, Met 1 ( alkaline earth metal) is k because it is an essential component is essential that greater than 0, Preferably, 0 <k <1, 0.3 <l <2.5, 0.5 <m <2.5, and 0 <n <0.5. It is particularly preferable that 0.5 <m <1.8.

  By using the negative electrode active material (silicon composite particles) obtained in the present invention for a negative electrode, a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, particularly a lithium ion secondary battery, having a high capacity and a small irreversible capacity can be produced. it can. If it is a negative electrode active material in which silicon-based fine particles are dispersed, a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery having particularly excellent energy density can be obtained. The negative electrode active material of the present invention generates little decomposition gas of the electrolytic solution, and since the collapse of the electrode due to volume expansion is mitigated, it can provide good cycle characteristics.

In this case, the obtained nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery (especially lithium ion secondary battery) is characterized in that it uses a negative electrode active material composed of the silicon composite particles, and includes other positive electrodes, electrolytes, separators, and the like. The material and battery shape are not limited. For example, as the positive electrode active material, oxides of transition metals such as LiCoO ₂ , LiNiO ₂ , LiMn ₂ O ₄ , V ₂ O ₆ , MnO ₂ , TiS ₂ , and MoS ₂ , chalcogen compounds, and the like are used. As the electrolyte, for example, a non-aqueous solution containing a lithium salt such as lithium perchlorate is used, and as the non-aqueous solvent, propylene carbonate, ethylene carbonate, dimethoxyethane, γ-butyrolactone, 2-methyltetrahydrofuran or the like alone or in two types The above is used in combination. Various other non-aqueous electrolytes and solid electrolytes can also be used. The shape of the secondary battery can also be a square shape, a cylindrical shape, a coin shape, or the like.

  In addition, when producing a negative electrode using the said negative electrode active material (silicon composite particle), active materials or conductive agents, such as graphite, can be added to a silicon composite particle. Also in this case, the type of the graphite active material or the conductive agent is not particularly limited, and may be any electron conductive material that does not cause decomposition or alteration in the configured battery. Specifically, Al, Ti, Fe, Metal powder and metal fiber such as Ni, Cu, Zn, Ag, Sn, Si, or natural graphite, artificial graphite, various coke powders, mesophase carbon, vapor grown carbon fiber, pitch carbon fiber, PAN carbon fiber, Graphite such as various resin fired bodies can be used. In addition, a binder can also be added.

  A known method can be used for producing the negative electrode, and the production method is not particularly limited. For example, the negative electrode active material of the present invention is mixed with a carbon-based active material, a conductive agent, a binder, etc., and the mixture is applied to an electrolytic copper foil and dried or fired, and the negative electrode is pressed by pressing as necessary. Can be produced. The carbon-based active material and the conductive agent in the mixture can be, for example, 1 to 90% by mass in total, and the binder in the mixture can be, for example, 1 to 20% by mass.

  EXAMPLES Hereinafter, although an Example and a comparative example are shown and this invention is demonstrated more concretely, this invention is not limited to these.

In the following examples, the volume average particle diameter (cumulative volume 50% diameter D ₅₀ ) was measured by a wet method using a laser diffraction type particle size distribution analyzer (MT3300EX II manufactured by Nikkiso Co., Ltd.). The volume resistivity was measured with a four-probe type volume resistivity meter (MCP-PD51 manufactured by Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation), and a value at a load of 12 kN was shown. As an X-ray diffractometer, D8 ADVANCE manufactured by BRUKER AXS was used. The Raman spectrometer was measured with HR-800 manufactured by Horiba, Ltd.

Example 1
A 1 L container of a biaxial planetary kneader was charged with 150 g of methylvinylsiloxane having a viscosity of 60,000 cp represented by the following chemical formula (1) and 10 g of calcium carbonate, and kneaded for 1 hour at a rotation speed of 30 rpm. As a vulcanizing agent, a vulcanizing agent for silicone rubber compound (trade name: C-) manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. containing 80% by mass of 2,5-dimethyl-2,5-bis (t-butylperoxy) -hexane. 8A) 0.8 g was added, and a curing reaction was performed at 150 ° C. for 1 hour. The cured product obtained after cooling was a colorless resin, and the yield was 98.7%. Next, after the obtained cured product was pulverized to a diameter of about 1 mm, 100 g was charged into an alumina crucible having an internal volume of 280 mL, and baked at 1000 ° C. for 1 hour in a muffle furnace under an argon gas atmosphere. It was. The obtained fired product was a black glassy substance, and no alteration such as heat generation, ignition or deliquescence was observed even in the atmosphere. The yield after firing at 1000 ° C. was 76.5%. The fired product was pulverized with a jet mill to obtain a black powder having an average particle size of 5.8 μm.

Methyl vinyl siloxane

  The production conditions and measurement results of the powder of Example 1 are shown in Table 1.

(Examples 2 to 4)
Examples 2 to 4 were carried out in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the amount of calcium carbonate was changed from Example 1. The production conditions and measurement results of the powders of Examples 2 to 4 are shown in Table 1.

(Example 5)
A 1-L container of a biaxial planetary kneader is charged with 10 g of polycrystalline metal silicon particles having an average particle diameter of 0.2 μm, 150 g of methylvinylsiloxane having a viscosity of 60,000 cp represented by the above chemical formula (1), and 10 g of calcium carbonate, and 30 rpm The mixture was kneaded for 1 hour at a rotational speed of. As a vulcanizing agent, a vulcanizing agent for silicone rubber compound (trade name: C-) manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. containing 80% by mass of 2,5-dimethyl-2,5-bis (t-butylperoxy) -hexane. 8A) 0.8 g was added, and a curing reaction was performed at 150 ° C. for 1 hour. The cured product obtained after cooling was a grey-brown resin, and the yield was 99.0%. Next, after the obtained cured product was pulverized to a diameter of about 1 mm, 100 g was charged into an alumina crucible having an internal volume of 280 mL, and baked at 1000 ° C. for 1 hour in a muffle furnace under an argon gas atmosphere. It was. The obtained fired product was a black glassy substance, and no alteration such as heat generation, ignition or deliquescence was observed even in the atmosphere. The yield after firing at 1000 ° C. was 83.7%. The fired product was pulverized with a jet mill to obtain a black powder having an average particle size of 5.7 μm.

  The production conditions and measurement results of the powder of Example 5 are shown in Table 2.

(Examples 6 to 12)
Examples 6 to 12 were carried out in the same manner as in Example 5 except that the amounts of metallic silicon and calcium carbonate were changed from Example 5. The production conditions and measurement results of the powders of Examples 6 to 12 are shown in Table 2.

(Comparative Example 1)
150 g of methylvinylsiloxane having a viscosity of 60,000 cp represented by the above chemical formula (1) was charged in a 1 L container of a biaxial planetary kneader and kneaded for 1 hour at a rotation speed of 30 rpm. As a vulcanizing agent, a vulcanizing agent for silicone rubber compound (trade name: C-) manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. containing 80% by mass of 2,5-dimethyl-2,5-bis (t-butylperoxy) -hexane. 8A) 0.8 g was added, and a curing reaction was performed at 150 ° C. for 1 hour. The cured product obtained after cooling was a grey-brown resin, and the yield was 96.0%. Next, after the obtained cured product is pulverized to a diameter of about 1 mm, 100 g is charged into an alumina crucible having an internal volume of 280 mL, and baked in a muffle furnace under an argon gas atmosphere at 1000 ° C. for 1 hour. went. The obtained fired product was a black glassy substance. The yield after firing at 1000 ° C. was 76.9%. The fired product was pulverized with a jet mill to obtain a black powder having an average particle size of 5.9 μm.

  The production conditions and measurement results of the powder of Comparative Example 1 are shown in Table 3.

(Comparative Example 2)
150 g of methyl vinyl siloxane having a viscosity of 60,000 cp represented by the above chemical formula (1) and 10 g of lithium carbonate were charged in a 1 L container of a biaxial planetary kneader and kneaded for 1 hour at a rotation speed of 30 rpm. As a vulcanizing agent, a vulcanizing agent for silicone rubber compound (trade name: C-) manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. containing 80% by mass of 2,5-dimethyl-2,5-bis (t-butylperoxy) -hexane. 8A) 0.8 g was added, and a curing reaction was performed at 150 ° C. for 1 hour. The cured product obtained after cooling was a colorless resin, and the yield was 98.2%. Next, after the obtained cured product is pulverized to a diameter of about 1 mm, 100 g is charged into an alumina crucible having an internal volume of 280 mL, and baked in a muffle furnace under an argon gas atmosphere at 1000 ° C. for 1 hour. went. The obtained fired product was a black glassy substance, and no alteration such as heat generation, ignition or deliquescence was observed even in the atmosphere. The yield after firing at 1000 ° C. was 71.5%. The fired product was pulverized with a jet mill to obtain a black powder having an average particle size of 6.1 μm.

  The production conditions and measurement results of the powder of Comparative Example 2 are shown in Table 3.

(Comparative Examples 3 and 4)
Comparative Examples 3 and 4 were carried out in the same manner as in Comparative Example 2 except that the blending amount of lithium carbonate was changed from Comparative Example 2. The production conditions and measurement results of the powders of Comparative Examples 3 and 4 are shown in Table 3.

  The X-ray diffraction spectrum of the powder particles produced in Example 3 and Example 11 is shown in FIG. 1, and the Raman spectrum is shown in FIG. A cross-sectional scanning electron microscope image of the black powder of Example 10 is shown in FIG.

In the X-ray diffraction spectrum of Example 3, a signal attributed to CaSiO ₃ was observed around 15-25 °, and it was confirmed that the SiOC material and Ca were reacting. On the other hand, in the X-ray diffraction spectrum of Example 11, a sharp signal derived from Si (111) was observed around 28.4 °, and a broad signal was observed around 15-25 °.

In the Raman spectroscopic spectrum, in both Example 3 and Example 11, signals due to diamond structure and graphite structure carbon were observed in the vicinity of 1340 cm ⁻¹ and 1600 cm ⁻¹ , respectively, but in the spectrum of Example 3, signals due to silicon were observed. Was not. Therefore, it is suggested that the CaSiOC material of Example 3 does not contain crystalline silicon. On the other hand, a silicon signal was observed in the vicinity of 520 cm ⁻¹ from the powder of Example 11 to which silicon was added. Therefore, it was confirmed that the composite material of Example 11 was a composite of crystalline silicon and SiOC material.

  Further, SEM observation of the particle cross section of the powder of Example 10 confirmed that Si was dispersed in the CaSiOC material (FIG. 3).

  In addition, as shown in Comparative Example 1 in Table 3, SiOC is a material having a high volume resistivity and poor conductivity, but it was confirmed that the conductivity was improved by introducing Ca. Furthermore, the volume resistivity of Example 1-12 shown in Table 1 and Table 2 is compared with Comparative Example 1 in which Li or Ca is not added even when metallic silicon is added, as well as when metallic silicon is not added. Also, it was confirmed that it was effective as a battery material.

<Evaluation of battery characteristics>
About the particle | grains obtained in Example 1-12 and Comparative Example 1-4, in order to confirm the usefulness as a negative electrode active material, the battery characteristic was evaluated. Examples 13-24 and Comparative Example 5-8 are examples using the particles obtained in Example 1-12 and Comparative Example 1-4, respectively.

85% of the particles of Example 1-12 and Comparative Example 1-4 as the negative electrode active material, 2.5% of artificial graphite (average particle diameter D ₅₀ = 3 μm) as the conductive agent, N-methylpyrrolidone of acetylene black A mixture comprising the dispersion (solid content: 17.5%) and 2.5% in terms of solid content was diluted with N-methylpyrrolidone. As a binder, 10% of Ube Industries, Ltd. polyimide resin (trade name: U-Varnish-11D025, solid content 31%) in terms of solid content was added to obtain a slurry.

This slurry was applied to a copper foil having a thickness of 12 μm using a 50 μm doctor blade, and after preliminary drying, an electrode was pressure-formed by a roller press at 60 ° C., dried at 300 ° C. for 2 hours, and then punched to 2 cm ² . A negative electrode molded body was obtained.

  Using the obtained molded negative electrode, a lithium foil was used as a counter electrode, and lithium bis (trifluoromethanesulfonyl) imide was used as a non-aqueous electrolyte in a 1/1 (volume ratio) mixture of ethylene carbonate and diethyl carbonate at 1 mol / L. Four lithium ion secondary batteries for evaluation each using a non-aqueous electrolyte solution dissolved at a concentration of 30 μm and a polyethylene microporous film having a thickness of 30 μm were prepared.

  The produced lithium ion secondary battery was aged overnight at room temperature, two of them were disassembled, and the thickness of the negative electrode was measured.

  Further, for the other two, using a secondary battery charge / discharge tester (manufactured by Nagano Co., Ltd.), after charging with a constant current of 0.15c until the voltage of the test cell reaches 0V, after reaching 0V Were charged by decreasing the current so as to keep the cell voltage at 0V. And charging was complete | finished when the electric current value fell below 0.02c, and charge capacity was computed. Note that c is a current value for charging the theoretical capacity of the negative electrode in one hour. Similarly, the two were disassembled, and the volume change rate was calculated by measuring the thickness of the negative electrode. The results are shown in Tables 4-6.

  The following can be seen from Tables 4-6. From the comparison of Examples 13 to 15 using the active materials of Examples 1 to 3 and Comparative Examples 6 to 8 using the active materials of Comparative Examples 2 to 4, the addition of the same parts by mass indicates that lithium carbonate and calcium carbonate It can be seen that lithium carbonate is superior in reducing the irreversible capacity due to the difference in molecular weight and difference in ionic valence. However, in the electrodes of Comparative Examples 6-8 using the active material to which lithium carbonate was added (Comparative Examples 2 to 4), the phenomenon that the electrode paste gelled was observed, and it was confirmed that the storage stability was poor. . On the other hand, Examples 13 to 24 using calcium carbonate were found to be practically excellent without gelation or viscosity change.

  Moreover, when compared with Comparative Example 5, Examples 13 to 24 all show a decrease in irreversible capacity. The active materials used in these examples show that the irreversible capacity decreases with the addition of calcium carbonate (or calcium carbonate and metallic silicon), and the discharge capacity tends to increase with the addition of metallic silicon. It was found that the active material has an increased efficiency and a small loss of irreversible capacity. In addition, the volume change magnification was equivalent to that of general silicon oxide in spite of being a high capacity active material.

<Evaluation of cycle characteristics>
In order to evaluate the cycle characteristics of the obtained molded negative electrode, the negative electrode molded bodies of Examples 13, 14, 23, and 24 and Comparative Example 7 were used, lithium foil was used for the counter electrode, and lithium bismuth was used as the nonaqueous electrolyte. Using a non-aqueous electrolyte solution prepared by dissolving (trifluoromethanesulfonyl) imide in a 1/1 (volume ratio) mixture of ethylene carbonate and diethyl carbonate at a concentration of 1 mol / L, a microporous polyethylene film having a thickness of 30 μm is used as a separator. A coin-type lithium ion secondary battery using was manufactured.

  The produced coin-type lithium ion secondary battery was allowed to stand at room temperature for two nights, and then charged with a secondary battery charge / discharge test apparatus (manufactured by Nagano Co., Ltd.) until the test cell voltage reached 5 mV (negative electrode). Charging was performed at a constant current of 0.3 C) by reference, and after reaching 5 mV, charging was performed by decreasing the current so as to keep the cell voltage at 5 mV. Then, the charging was terminated when the current value fell below 0.1 mA. Discharging was performed at a constant current of 0.5 mA, and when the cell voltage reached 2000 mV, the discharging was terminated and the discharge capacity was determined. This was continued for 50 cycles. The result is shown in FIG. Compared to Comparative Example 7, it can be seen that all of the Examples have a high discharge capacity and a high cycle stability.

  In addition, although the example which added Ca to the negative electrode active material was shown in the said Example, the same result was obtained also in the example which added Mg.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. The above-described embodiment is an exemplification, and the present invention has any configuration that has substantially the same configuration as the technical idea described in the claims of the present invention and that exhibits the same effects. Are included in the technical scope.

Claims (13)

A negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery represented by an elemental composition formula Met ¹ —Si—O—C—H (where Met ¹ is one or a mixture of alkaline earth metal elements) ,
A negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, comprising a silicate composed of a silicon-based inorganic compound and the alkaline earth metal.   The negative electrode active material for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the alkaline earth metal element is Mg or Ca.   3. The negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein fine particles made of silicon, a silicon alloy, or a silicon oxide are dispersed in the silicate. 4.   The negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the silicate further contains a Group 3 to Group 13 metal.   The negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to claim 4, wherein the Group 3 to Group 13 metal is a first transition metal or a second transition metal.   The negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein carbon particles are dispersed in the silicate.   A negative electrode for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, wherein the negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to any one of claims 1 to 6 is used.   A non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery using the negative electrode for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to claim 7. Mixing an alkaline earth metal compound and a composition containing a curable organosilicon compound to form a raw material mixture;
Curing the curable organosilicon compound to cure the raw material mixture;
A method for producing a negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, comprising: firing the cured raw material mixture to mineralize the curable organosilicon compound.   The method for producing a negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to claim 9, wherein the raw material mixture is further mixed with fine particles made of silicon, a silicon alloy, or silicon oxide.   The method for producing a negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the raw material mixture is further mixed with a Group 3 to Group 13 metal compound.   The method for producing a negative electrode active material for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the raw material mixture is further mixed with carbon particles.   The method for producing a negative electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery according to claim 12, wherein the carbon particles are made of natural graphite, synthetic graphite, or carbon fiber.