Lithium-ion batteries (LIB) with titanium dioxide as anode material emerged as one of the most energy-storage systems. In this study, we investigate aluminum-doped non-stoichiometric titanium dioxide synthesized using sol-gel method and subsequent reduction treatment. Different analysis techniques, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) tests are conducted for the analysis of material and performance of the battery. The XRD results affirmed that the sample consisted of pure titanium-dioxide phases with no other precipitated phases, such as aluminum oxide (α-Al2O3 or γ-Al2O3). XPS analysis evident that aluminum was successfully incorporated into the titanium-dioxide lattice and the presence of Ti3+ and oxygen vacancy signals confirmed its non-stoichiometric nature. TEM images implies that doping and its extent did not significantly affect the size and morphology of the nanoscale particles. The selected area electron diffraction shows that the sample consisted of a mixture of the anatase and rutile phases. The best-performing electrode was found to be the one composed of 1 % aluminum-doped non-stoichiometric titanium dioxide. After 200 charge-discharge cycles, the battery maintained a capacity of 195 mAh/g, retaining 97.5 % of its reversible capacity. Cyclic stability test under high current condition shows that the capacity remained at 157 mAh/g without any noticeable decay after 750 charge-discharge cycles at a 1 C rate. This material exhibited the lowest impedance and the highest lithium-ion diffusion rate. Additionally, in situ synchrotron-based XRD indicates coexistence of three phases such as a new reversible intermediate phase LiTiO2, a partially irreversible intermediate phase Li0.55TiO2, and the anatase phase. The analysis results indicated that the peak intensities and angular shifts were associated with the phase changes that occurred during charge and discharge of the electrochemical processes. The interaction mechanism study between lithium ions and the lattice of mixed phase (anatase, rutile) identified the occurrence of non-uniform stress resulting from lithium-ion insertion in the rutile phase, in addition to the irreversible reactions in both the rutile and anatase phases. Through the synergistic effect of heteroatom doping and oxygen vacancy treatment, the conductivity of titanium dioxide is enhanced, leading to improved performance in capacity, impedance, cycle life, and rate as an anode material in LIBs.
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