Preparation and characterization of high-rate and long-cycle LiFePO4/C nanocomposite as cathode material for lithium-ion battery

Olivine LiFePO₄/C nanocomposite cathode materials with small-sized particles and a unique electrochemical performance were successfully prepared by a simple solid-state reaction using oxalic acid and citric acid as the chelating reagent and carbon source. The structure and electrochemical properties of the samples were investigated. The results show that LiFePO₄/C nanocomposite with oxalic acid (oxalic acid: Fe²⁺= 0.75:1) and a small quantity of citric acid are single phase and deliver initial discharge capacity of 122.1 mAh/g at 1 C with little capacity loss up to 500 cycles at room temperature. The rate capability and cyclability are also outstanding at elevated temperature. When charged/discharged at 60 °C, this materials present excellent initial discharge capacity of 148.8 mAh/g at 1 C, 128.6 mAh/g at 5 C, and 115.0 mAh/g at 10 C, respectively. The extraordinarily high performance of LiFePO₄/C cathode materials can be exploited suitably for practical lithium-ion batteries.     

Li<Subscript>0.99</Subscript>Ti<Subscript>0.01</Subscript>FePO<Subscript>4</Subscript>/C composite as cathode material for lithium ion battery

Three kinds of LiFePO₄ materials, mixed with carbon (as LiFePO₄/C), doped with Ti (as Li_0.99Ti_0.01FePO₄), and treated both ways (as Li_0.99Ti_0.01FePO₄/C composite), were synthesized via ball milling by solid-state reaction method. The crystal structure and electrochemical behavior of the materials were investigated using X-ray diffraction, SEM, TEM, cyclic voltammetry, and charge/discharge cycle measurements. It was found that the electrochemical behavior of LiFePO₄ could be increased by carbon coating and Ti-doping methods. Among the materials, Li_0.99Ti_0.01FePO₄/C composite presents the best electrochemical behavior, with an initial discharge capacity of 154.5 mAh/g at a discharge rate of 0.2 C, and long charge/discharge cycle life. After 120 cycles, its capacity remains at 92% of the initial capacity. The Li_0.99Ti_0.01FePO₄/C composite developed here can be used as the cathode material for lithium ion batteries.     

Physical and electrochemical characterizations of LiFePO4-incorporated Ag nanoparticles

Olivine-type LiFePO₄ composite materials for cathode material of the lithium-ion batteries were synthesized by using a sol-gel method and were coated by a chemical deposition of silver particles. As-obtained LiFePO₄/C-Ag (2.1 wt.%) composites were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), conductivity measurements, cyclic voltammetry, as well as galvanostatic measurements. The results revealed that the discharge capacity of the LiFePO₄/C-Ag electrode is 136.6 mAh/g, which is 7.6% higher than that of uncoated LiFePO₄/C electrode (126.9 mAh/g). The LiFePO₄/C coated by silver nanoparticles enhances the electrode conductivity and specific capacity at high discharge rates. The improved capacity at high discharge rates may be attributed to increased electrode conductivity and the synergistic effect on electron and Li⁺ transport after silver incorporation.     

Biosynthesis and electrochemical characteristics of LiFePO4/C by microwave processing

The yeast cells are adopted as a template and cementation agent to prepare LiFePO₄/C with high surface area by co-precipitation and microwave processing. The electrochemical properties of the resultant products are investigated. The synthesized LiFePO₄/C is characterized by means of X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller method, and battery test instrument. The LiFePO₄/C particles with average size of 35-100 nm coated by porous carbon are observed by TEM. The LiFePO₄/C, with the specific surface area of 98.3 m²/g, exhibits initial discharge specific capacity of 147 mAh/g and good cycle ability. The yeast cells as a template are used to synthesize the precursor LiFePO₄/cells compounds. In microwave heating process, the use of yeast cells as reducing matter and cementation agent results in the enhancement of the electrochemical properties.     

Continuous supercritical hydrothermal synthesis: lithium secondary ion battery applications

Nanosized lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO₄) and transition metal oxide (MO, where M is Cu, Ni, Mn, Co, and Fe) particles are synthesized continuously in supercritical water at 25?C30?MPa and 400??C under various conditions for active material application in lithium secondary ion batteries. The properties of the nanoparticles, including crystallinity, particle size, surface area, and electrochemical performance, are characterized in detail. The discharge capacity of LiFePO₄ was enhanced up to 140?mAh/g using a simple carbon coating method. The LiFePO₄ particles prepared using supercritical hydrothermal synthesis (SHS) deliver the reversible and stable capacity at a current density of 0.1?C rate during ten cycles. The initial discharge capacity of the MO is in the range of 800?C1,100?mAh/g, values much higher than that of graphite. However, rapid capacity fading is observed after the first few cycles. The continuous SHS can be a promising method to produce nanosized cathode and anode materials.     

Synthesis, characterization, and electrochemical performance of LiFePO4/C cathode materials for lithium ion batteries using various carbon sources: best results by using polystyrene nano-spheres

Olivine LiFePO₄/C cathode materials for lithium ion batteries were synthesized using monodisperse polystyrene (PS) nano-spheres and other carbon sources. The structure, morphology, and electrochemical performance of LiFePO₄/C were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), galvanostatic charge–discharge tests, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements, and Raman spectroscopy measurements. The results demonstrated that LiFePO₄/C materials have an ordered olivine-type structure with small particle sizes. Electrochemical analyses showed that the LiFePO₄/C cathode material synthesized from 7 wt.% PS nano-spheres delivers an initial discharge capacity of 167 mAh g^-1 (very close to the theoretical capacity of 170 mAh g^-1) at 0.1 C rate cycled between 2.5 and 4.1 V with excellent capacity retention after 50 cycles. According to Raman spectroscopy and EIS analysis, this composite had a lower I _D/I _G, sp ³/sp ² peak ratio, charge transfer resistance, and a higher exchange current density, indicating an improved electrochemical performance, due to the increased proportion of graphite-like carbon formed during pyrolysis of PS nano-spheres, containing functionalized aromatic groups.     

Structural and electrochemical characterization of LiFePO4/C prepared by a sol–gel route with long- and short-chain carbon sources

A fast and convenient sol–gel route was developed to synthesize LiFePO₄/C composite cathode material, and the sol–gel process can be finished in less than an hour. Polyethyleneglycol (PEG), d-fructose, 1-hexadecanol, and cinnamic acid were firstly introduced to non-aqueous sol–gel system as structure modifiers and carbon sources. The samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, and elemental analysis measurements. Electrochemical performances of LiFePO₄/C composite cathode materials were characterized by galvanostatic charge/discharge and AC impedance measurements. The material obtained using compound additives of PEG and d-fructose presented good electrochemical performance with a specific capacity of 157.7 mAh g⁻¹ at discharge rate 0.2 C, and the discharge capacity remained about 153.6 mAh g⁻¹ after 50 cycles. The results indicated that the improved electrochemical performance originated mainly from the microporous network structure, well crystalline particles, and the increased electronic conductivity by proper carbon coating (3.11%).     

Surface treatment of LiFePO4 cathode material with PPy/PEG conductive layer

In this work, we studied LiFePO₄ particles coated with thin films of highly conductive polypyrrole (PPy) and their electrochemical performance in cathode layers of lithium cells. Carbon-free LiFePO₄ particles were synthesized by a solvothermal method. Besides this, a part of the experiments were carried out on commercial carbon-coated LiFePO₄ for comparison. Polypyrrole coated LiFePO₄ particles (PPy-LiFePO₄) were obtained by a straightforward oxidative polymerization of dissolved pyrrole on LiFePO₄ particles dispersed in water. The use of polyethylene glycol (PEG) as an additive during the polymerization was decisive to achieve high electronic conductivities in the final cathode layers. The carbon-free and carbon-coated LiFePO₄ particles were prepared with PPy and with PPy/PEG coating. The obtained PPy-LiFePO₄ and PPy/PEG-LiFePO₄ powders were characterized by SEM, EIS, cyclic voltammetry, and galvanostatic charge/discharge measurements in lithium-ion cells with lithium metal as counter and reference electrode. Carbon-free LiFePO₄ coated with PPy/PEG hybrid films exhibited very good electrode kinetics and a stable discharge capacity of 156 mAh/g at a rate of C/10. Impedance measurements showed that the PPy/PEG coating decreases the charge-transfer resistance of the corresponding LiFePO₄ cathode material very effectively, which was attributed to a favorable mixed ionic and electronic conductivity of the PPy/PEG coatings.     

Surfactant assisted solvothermal synthesis of LiFePO_4 nanorods for lithium-ion batteries

Well-shaped and uniformly dispersed LiFePO_4 nanorods with a length of 400–500 nm and a diameter of about 100 nm, are obtained with participation of a proper amount of anion surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfonate(SDS) without any further heating as a post-treatment. The surfactant acts as a self-assembling supermolecular template, which stimulated the crystallization of LiFePO_4 and directed the nanoparticles growing into nanorods between bilayers of surfactant(BOS). LiFePO_4 nanorods with the reducing crystal size along the b axis shorten the diffusion distance of Li~+ extraction/insertion, and thus improve the electrochemical properties of LiFePO_4 nanorods. Such prepared LiFePO_4 nanorods exhibited excellent specific capacity and high rate capability with discharge capacity of 151 mAh/g, 122 mAh/g and 95 mAh/g at 0.1C, 1 C and 5 C, respectively. Such excellent performance of LiFePO_4 nanorods is supposed to be ascribed to the fast Li~+ diffusion velocity from reduced crystal size along the b axis and the well electrochemical conductivity. The structure, morphology and electrochemical performance of the samples were characterized by XRD, FE-SEM, HRTEM, charge/discharge tests, and EIS(electrochemical impedance spectra).     

Synthesis and characterization of core–shell F-doped LiFePO<Subscript>4</Subscript>/C composite for lithium-ion batteries

Core–shell LiFePO₄/C composite was synthesized via a sol–gel method and doped by fluorine to improve its electrochemical performance. Structural characterization shows that F⁻ ions were successfully introduced into the LiFePO₄ matrix. Transmission electron microscopy verifies that F-doped LiFePO₄/C composite was composed of nanosized particles with a ~3 nm thick carbon shell coating on the surface. As a cathode material for lithium-ion batteries, the F-doped LiFePO₄/C nanocomposite delivers a discharge capacity of 162 mAh/g at 0.1 C rate. Moreover, the material also shows good high-rate capability, with discharge capacities reaching 113 and 78 mAh/g at 10 and 40 C current rates, respectively. When cycled at 20 C, the cell retains 86% of its initial discharge capacity after 400 cycles, demonstrating excellent high-rate cycling performance.     

Enhancement of electrochemical properties of niobium‐doped LiFePO4/C synthesized by sol–gel method

LiFePO₄/C and LiFe_1–xNb _xPO₄/C composites were synthesized using a sol–gel method. The influence of niobium doping on the constitution, morphology, and electrochemical properties of the samples was studied in detail. X‐Ray diffraction patterns indicate that appropriate Nb doping does not alter seriously the structure of LiFePO₄. Electrochemical characterization of the electrodes showed that the Li‐ion batteries based on LiFe_1–xNb _xPO₄/C electrode exhibited better charge/discharge performance than those based on LiFePO₄/C. The LiFe_0.95Nb_0.05PO₄/C‐based cell had the specific capacity of 157, 121, and 85 mAh/g at 0.2, 2, and 5 C, respectively, in comparison with 126, 94, and 52 mAh/g for the LiFePO₄/C cell. The results show that the addition of niobium promotes the electrochemical performance of the materials especially at high charge/discharge rates of the battery.     

Effect of PEG molecular weight on the crystal structure and electrochemical performance of LiV3O8

This paper describes systematic studies on the effect of polyethylene glycol (PEG) molecular weight on the crystal structure and particularly the electrochemical performance of LiV₃O₈. Scanning electron microscopy results indicate that after the decomposition of PEG, the structure of resultant products exhibits differences in morphology (shape, particle size, and specific surface area). The electrochemical results show that LiV₃O₈ cathode material treated by PEG (mean molecular weight of 10,000) has greater initial discharge capacity and better cyclic stability than other materials treated with PEG of different molecular weight. Its initial discharge capacity is 282.1 mAh g⁻¹ and maintains 222.2 mAh/g after 50 cycles in 0.5 C rates (150 mA g⁻¹).     

Preparation and Electrochemical Performance of V2O3-C Dual-Layer Coated LiFePO4 by Carbothermic Reduction of V2O5

The V₂O₃-C dual-layer coated LiFePO₄ cathode materials with excellent rate capability and cycling stability were prepared by carbothermic reduction of V₂O₅. X-ray powder diffraction, elemental analyzer, high resolution transmission electron microscopy and Raman spectra revealed that the V₂O₃ phase co-existed with carbon in the coating layer of LiFePO₄ particles and the carbon content reduced without graphitization degree changing after the carbothermic reduction of V₂O₅. The electrochemical measurement results indicated that small amounts of V₂O₃ improved rate capability and cycling stability at elevated temperature of LiFePO₄/C cathode materials. The V₂O₃-C dual-layer coated LiFePO₄ composite with 1wt% vanadium oxide delivered an initial specific capacity of 167 mAh/g at 0.2 C and 129 mAh/g at 5 C as well as excellent cycling stability. Even at elevated temperature of 55 oC, the specific capacity of 151 mAh/g was achieved at 1 C without capacity fading after 100 cycles.     

LiFePO4/C composites from carbothermal reduction method

Using the cheap raw materials lithium carbonate, iron phosphate, and carbon, LiFePO₄/C composite can be obtained from the carbothermal reduction method. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electronic microscope (SEM) observations were used to investigate the structure and morphology of LiFePO₄/C. The LiFePO₄ particles were coated by smaller carbon particles. LiFePO₄/C obtained at 750 °C presents good electrochemical performance with an initial discharge capacity of 133 mAh/g, capacity retention of 128 mAh/g after 20 cycles, and a diffusion coefficient of lithium ions in the LiFePO₄/C of 8.80?×?10^?13 cm²/s, which is just a little lower than that of LiFePO₄/C obtained from the solid-state reaction (9.20?×?10^?13 cm²/s) by using FeC₂O₄ as a precursor.     

The improvement of the high-rate charge/discharge performances of LiFePO4 cathode material by Sn doping

Nanocrystalline LiFePO₄ and LiFe_0.97Sn_0.03PO₄ cathode materials were synthesized by an inorganic-based sol–gel route. The physicochemical properties of samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and elemental mapping. The doping effect of Sn on the electrochemical performance of LiFePO₄ cathode material was extensively investigated. The results showed that the doping of tin was beneficial to refine the particle size, increase the electrical conductivity, and facilitate the lithium-ion diffusion, which contributed to the improvement of the electrochemical properties of LiFePO₄, especially the high-rate charge/discharge performance. At the low discharge rate of 0.5 C, the LiFe_0.97Sn_0.03PO₄ sample delivered a specific capacity of 158 mAh g⁻¹, as compared with 147 mAh g⁻¹ of the pristine LiFePO₄. At higher C-rate, the doping sample exhibited more excellent discharge performance. LiFe_0.97Sn_0.03PO₄ delivered specific capacity of 146 and 128 mAh g⁻¹ at 5 C and 10 C, respectively, in comparison with 119 and 107 mAh g⁻¹ for LiFePO₄. Moreover, the doping of Sn did not influence the cycle capability, even at 10 C.     

Synthesis and characterization of LiFe0.99Mn0.01 (PO4)2.99/3F0.01/C as a cathode material for lithium-ion battery

The olivine-typed cathode materials of LiFePO₄were prepared via solid-state reaction under argon atmosphere and co-doped by manganese and fluorine to improve their electrochemical performances. The crystal structure, morphology, and electrochemical properties of the prepared samples were investigated using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectrum, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry, and charge–discharge cycle measurements. The result showed that the electrochemical performance of LiFePO₄ had been improved dramatically by Mn–F co-doping. The initial discharge capacity of LiFe_0.99Mn_0.01 (PO₄)_2.99/3F_0.01/C samples reached 140.2 mAh/g at 1C rate and only had a small amount of fading in 50 cycles.     

Polyethylene Glycol for LiFePO<Subscript>4</Subscript>/C Composites Preparation: Large or Small Molecular Weight

Olivine LiFePO₄ is challenged by its poor electronic and ionic conductivities for lithium-ion batteries. Polyethylene glycol (PEG) has been applied for LiFePO₄ preparation by different research groups, but there is no consensus on the influence of the mean molecular weight of PEG on the structure and electrochemical performances of LiFePO₄/C composites. In this work, LiFePO₄/C composites were prepared by using micronsized FePO₄·2H₂O powder as starting material, PEG (mean molecular weight of 200, 400, 4000 or 10000) and citric acid as complex carbon source. The structure and electrochemical performances of LiFePO₄/C composites would be decided considerably by the mean molecular weight of PEG, and the sample using PEG200 exhibited the least inter-particle agglomeration, the smallest charge transfer resistance and the highest discharge capacity. A probable growth mechanism is also proposed based on SEM images and electrochemical results: with the assistance of citric acid, PEG molecule with small molecular weight tends to cover one or only a few micron-sized FePO₄·2H₂O particles, significantly suppress the agglomeration of primary LiFePO₄ particles and thus result in uniform particle-size distribution and carbon coating.     

Effect of different carbon conductive additives on electrochemical properties of LiFePO4-C/Li batteries

LiFePO₄-C nanoparticles were synthesized by a hydrothermal method and subsequent high-energy ball-milling. Different carbon conductive additives including nanosized acetylene black (AB) and multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) were used to enhance the electronic conductivity of LiFePO₄. The structural and morphological performance of LiFePO₄-C nanoparticles was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy. The electrochemical properties of LiFePO₄-C/Li batteries were analyzed by cyclic voltammetry and charge/discharge tests. XRD results demonstrate that LiFePO₄-C nanoparticles have an orthorhombic olivine-type structure with a space group of Pnma. LiFePO₄-C/Li battery with 5 wt% MWCNT displays the best electrochemical properties with a discharge capacity of 142 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.25 C at room temperature.     

Enhanced high rate and low temperature electrochemical properties of LiFePO4/C composites by doping samarium ion

The olivine-type samarium-doped LiFe_{1 ? x} Sm _x PO₄/C (x?=?0, 0.01, 0.02, 0.03, 0.04, and 0.05) composites were synthesized via liquid-phase precipitation reaction combined with the high-temperature solid-state method. The structure, morphology, and electrochemical performance of the samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscope, energy dispersive spectroscopy, galvanostatic charge–discharge, galvanostatic intermittent titration technique, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The results showed that the small amount of Sm³⁺ ion-doped can keep the olivine microstructure of LiFePO₄, modify the particle morphology, decrease polarization overpotential and charge transfer resistance, and enhance exchange current density, thus improve the electrochemical performance of the LiFePO₄/C. However, the large doped content of Sm³⁺ ion can form more SmPO₄, which can weaken the electrochemical performance of LiFePO₄/C. Among all the doped samples, LiFe_0.99Sm_0.01PO₄/C showed the best rate capacity, cycling stability, and low temperature performance. The LiFe_0.99Sm_0.01PO₄/C sample exhibited the initial discharge capacity of 148.1, 133.4, 117.5, and 106.6 mAh g^?1 at 1C, 2C, 5C, and 10C, respectively. In addition, the discharge capacity of the material was 94.8 mAh g^?1 after 800 cycles at 10C. Moreover, the initial discharge capacity of 0.1C, 0.2C, 0.5C, and 1C were 104.4, 96.2, 53.9, and 50.8 mAh g^?1 at ?20 °C.     

Superior high-rate cycling performance of LiFePO4/C-PPy composite at 55 °C

A facile chemical polymerization method was applied to prepare LiFePO₄/C-PPy composite using Fe(III)tosylate as oxidant. The as-prepared LiFePO₄/C-PPy sample with PPy content of approximately 4 wt% showed great rate capability with a discharge capacity of 115 mAh/g at 20C. High temperate cycling performance of the LiFePO₄/C-PPy sample was compared with bare LiFePO₄/C at 5C charge–discharge rate at 55 °C. The LiFePO₄/C-PPy cathode showed superior cycling stability with an initial capacity of 155 mAh/g. Ninety percentage of this initial capacity was retained after 300 cycles, compared to 40% of that of bare LiFePO₄/C. The LiFePO₄/C-PPy electrode showed stable discharge plateau voltage of 3.35–3.25 V vs. Li⁺/Li during long term cycling. The superior performance of the LiFePO₄/C-PPy electrode was due to the enhanced electrical conductivity, negligible iron dissolution and alleviated electrode cracking contributed by PPy coating.