Patent ID: 8158282

Claim:
A method of producing a lithium-ion battery anode comprising: A) Providing an anode active material; wherein said anode active material is selected from the group consisting of: a) silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), tin (Sn), lead (Pb), antimony (Sb), bismuth (Bi), zinc (Zn), aluminum (Al), and cadmium (Cd); b) alloys or intermetallic compounds of Si, Ge, Sn, Pb, Sb, Bi, Zn, Al, or Cd with other elements, wherein said alloys or compounds are stoichiometric or non-stoichiometric; c) oxides, carbides, nitrides, sulfides, phosphides, selenides, and tellurides of Si, Ge, Sn, Pb, Sb, Bi, Zn, Al, Fe, or Cd, and their mixtures or composites; and d) combinations thereof; B) Intercalating or absorbing a desired amount of lithium into said anode active material to produce a prelithiated anode active material; C) Comminuting said prelithiated anode active material into fine particles with an average size less than 10 μm; and D) Combining multiple fine particles of said prelithiated anode active material with a conductive additive and/or a binder material to form said anode.