Microemulsion-mediated hydrothermal synthesis of LiFePO4 cathode material

Abstract

LiFePO4 is a material of great interest as cathode material for lithium ion batteries thanks to its good characteristics. One of the advanced techniques for LiFePO4 powder preparation is hydrothermal synthesis. In this work, LiFePO4 powders were prepared by a new approach, a microemulsion-mediated hydrothermal method in which microemulsion medium was further treated by hydrothermal reaction. The main advantage of the proposed route is low reaction temperature and short processing time that prevents agglomeration in the formed particles. LiFePO4 powders were prepared by microemulsion-mediated hydrothermal method in cyclohexane/Triton X-100/n-hexanole/water at 180 °C. The product of hydrothermal synthesis was heat treated in reductive atmosphere to avoid oxidation of Fe2+ to Fe3+. Powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and galvanostatic charge-discharge cycling.