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LiFePO 4 Mesocrystals for Lithium‐Ion Batteries
Author(s) -
Popovic Jelena,
DemirCakan Rezan,
Tornow Julian,
Morcrette Mathieu,
Su Dang Sheng,
Schlögl Robert,
Antonietti Markus,
Titirici MariaMagdalena
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
small
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.785
H-Index - 236
eISSN - 1613-6829
pISSN - 1613-6810
DOI - 10.1002/smll.201002000
Subject(s) - materials science , lithium (medication) , chemical engineering , carbon fibers , inert gas , amorphous solid , amorphous carbon , nanometre , cathode , coating , solvothermal synthesis , conductivity , nanoparticle , ion , nanotechnology , composite material , composite number , organic chemistry , chemistry , medicine , engineering , endocrinology
Olivine LiFePO 4 is considered one of the most promising cathode materials for Li‐ion batteries. A simple one‐step, template‐free, low‐temperature solvothermal method is developed for the synthesis of urchinlike hierarchical mesocrystals of pristine LiFePO 4 as well as carbon‐coated LiFePO 4 composites. Each urchinlike mesocrystal consists of LiFePO 4 sheets self‐assembled via a dipolar field in spheres during a solvothermal process under the influence of Cl − anions. The obtained primary sheets of LiFePO 4 are single crystalline in nature and can be coated in situ with an amorphous nitrogen‐doped carbonaceous layer several nanometers in thickness. To increase the conductivity of the carbon coating, the materials are subjected to further temperature treatment (700 °C) under an inert atmosphere. The lithium storage performance of the pure LiFePO 4 is compared with that of its carbon‐coated counterparts.