Research Data if the Publication "Analyzing and improving conductive networks in commercial high-energy Ni-rich cathodes"

However, low intrinsic electronic conductivity of NMC active materials makes the use of carbon-based additives necessary. Volume fraction and distribution of the carbon-binder-domain (CBD) have a significant impact on the electrode performance.

This work combines high-resolution tomography and microstructure-resolved simulations to characterize the three-dimensional transport networks of a commercial NMC811 cathode. FIB-SEM tomography reveals that low CBD volume fractions with suboptimal distribution cause a non-percolating conductive network in the microstructure and thus unfavourably low electronic conductivity. Increasing the CBD content through virtual electrode design enables percolation and enhances electronic conductivity fundamentally.