Rationalization of the industrial nickel hydroxide synthetic process in view of optimizing its electrochemical performances

A thorough study of all the steps involved in a typical industrial nickel hydroxide based active material preparation process has been carried out. The influence of the parameters involved in the reaction, graphite addition, sedimentation, washing, and homogenization steps upon the properties of the final product was determined. The results indicate that no significant particle growth takes place during the sedimentation step and it could thus be suppressed from the process, a fact that would result in cost and time savings. On the other hand, the sometimes disregarded final homogenization step turned out to be crucial in view of obtaining optimal electrochemical performances. Indeed, simple low cost additional milling treatments were found to significantly increase the electrochemical yields and are advisable for implementation in the industrial process.