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Recycling Bacteria for the Synthesis of LiMPO 4 (M = Fe, Mn) Nanostructures for High‐Power Lithium Batteries
Author(s) -
Zhou Yanping,
Yang Dan,
Zeng Yi,
Zhou Yan,
Ng Wun Jern,
Yan Qingyu,
Fong Eileen
Publication year - 2014
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.201400568
Subject(s) - materials science , nanoparticle , nanostructure , chemical engineering , nanotechnology , engineering
In this work, a novel waste‐to‐resource strategy to convert waste bacteria into a useful class of cathode materials, lithium metal phosphate (LiMPO 4 ; M = Fe, Mn), is presented. Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria used for removing phosphorus contamination from wastewater are harvested and used as precursors for the synthesis of LiMPO 4 . After annealing, LiFePO 4 and LiMnPO 4 nanoparticles with dimensions around 20 nm are obtained. These particles are found to be enveloped in a carbon layer with a thickness around 3–5 nm, generated through the decomposition of the organic matter from the bacterial cell cytoplasm. The battery performance for the LiFePO 4 is evaluated. A high discharge capacity of 140 mAh g −1 at 0.1 C with a flat plateau located at around 3.5 V is obtained. In addition, the synthesized particles display excellent stability and rate capabilities. Even under a high C rate of 10 C, a stable discharge capacity of 75.4 mAh g −1 can still be achieved.