LiNi0.5Co0.2Mn0.3O2 (NCM523) has been extensively used in the commercial lithium-ion batteries due to the excellent electrochemical performance and outstanding thermal stability. NCM523 powder is usually dried in vacuum before the slurry preparation, for the moisture greatly affects its electrochemical performance. In this paper, drying experiment of NCM523 powder is performed and the effects of different drying conditions are investigated. Moreover, the experiment data are fitted to eight mathematical models and Modified Page model is selected to describe the drying behavior. The effective diffusivities range from 9.7212 x 10(-8) to 3.2642 x 10(-7)m(2) center dot s(-1) and the activation energy is 8:300 kJ center dot mol(-1). The total energy consumption and specific energy consumption are discussed at the end of paper. The results reveal that raising drying temperature is beneficial to improve drying performance and cut the energy use. Decreasing the thickness is conducive to shorten drying time, but it is invalid for the reduction of specific energy consumption. These results can provide valuable information for the scientists and technicians when they design the drying process of NCM523 powder. (c) 2021 The Society of Powder Technology Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. and The Society of Powder Technology Japan. All rights reserved.