Fabrication of a flexible binder-free lithium manganese oxide cathode for secondary Li - Ion batteries

The binder-free technology is used to produce flexible self-standing cathodes for secondary Li-ion batteries containing commercial materials: lithium manganese oxide (LMO) and multiwall carbon nanotubes (CNT). The fragmentation of commercial LMO by short time ball-milling with low energy intensities, allows one to reduce the particle size from tens of microns to the micron and submicron level, while maintaining its spinel crystal structure. The electrode exhibits high electrical conductivity (46 S m(-1)) due to homogeneous distribution of LMO particles in the matrix of CNT. Electrochemical assessment of the electrode revealed good cyclic stability and a high reversibility of 93% after 120 galvanostatic charge/discharge cycles at 0.6C, with an initial specific discharge capacity of about 110 mA h-g(-1) and 80 mAh.g(-1) at high current rate of 2C.