Investigation of the Conversion Reaction Mechanisms for Binary Copper(II) Compounds by Solid-State NMR Spectroscopy and X-ray Diffraction

The conversion reaction mechanisms of CuS, CuF2, and CuO during the electrochemical reaction with Li are studied by solid-state 63Cu, 19F, and 7Li nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). For CuS, a two-step reaction is observed that is associated with an insertion reaction involving first limited incorporation of Li into CuS and then a two-phase reaction to form a material with the approximate composition LiCuS. This is followed by a conversion reaction to form Li2S and Cu, Cu1.96S being formed as a side product of the decomposition of LiCuS. Evidence for the insertion phases is found from both NMR and XRD. A direct conversion reaction to form LiF and Cu is seen for CuF2, whereas the 7Li NMR results indicate that CuO can tolerate a small amount of Li substitution before reacting to form Li2O and Cu. Both the diffraction and NMR results indicate that the size of the Cu particles formed on discharge are much larger in the CuS system, which is thought to result from the higher Cu1+ mobilities in the intermediate intercalation compounds Li x CuS. The factors that control the possible mechanisms for these conversion reactions are discussed.