Journal of Materials Science, Vol.50, No.8, 3075-3082, 2015
Mn-doped Li3V2(PO4)(3) nanocrystal with enhanced electrochemical properties based on aerosol synthesis method
Mn-doped Li3V2-x Mn (x) (PO4)(3) nanocrystals with enhanced electrochemical properties for lithium-ion batteries were synthesized by aerosol process successfully. The nanocrystals synthesized from aerosol-assisted spray process have an average particle size smaller than 500 nm, with some initial particle size of about 100 nm. The Mn-doped Li3V2(PO4)(3) cathode materials show higher capacity and coulombic efficiency than pure Li3V2(PO4)(3) materials. Especially, the Mn-doped Li3V1.94Mn0.06(PO4)(3) shows a capacity of 130 mAh/g in the voltage range of 3.0-4.4 V and a coulombic efficiency of 99.5 % at 1C. The results from XRD, SEM, HRTEM, and EIS suggested that lattice changes of Li3V2(PO4)(3) due to Mn doping and the fine particles enabled by aerosol-assisted spray process can significantly reduce the charge-transfer resistance and improve the apparent Li+ diffusion coefficient of insertion/desertion in the electrodes, which were the critical reason of better electrochemical performance of Mn-doped Li3V2(PO4)(3) cathode materials.