Ionothermal Synthesis of Tailor-Made LiFePO4 Powders for Li-Ion Battery Applications

As opposed to ceramic methods, low-temperature solvothermal-hydrothermal methods using liquid media as reaction support are less energy demanding to design new electrode materials; therefore, they tend to replace ceramic routes. Here, we report the use of ionic liquids as both solvent and template to enable the growth of LiFePO4 (LFP) powders with controlled size and morphology at temperatures at least 200 degrees C lower than those required for conventional ceramic methods, while showing excellent electrochemical performances versus lithium. An inherent advantage to the use of ionic liquids lies in the feasibility of carrying out the reaction at atmospheric pressure. Besides, the recovery of the powders from the reacting medium is particularly easy, as are the effluents and ionic liquid recycling. Additionally, it is shown that ionic liquids can be used as a structural directing agent to orient crystal growth and obtain powders adopting a single morphology. Needless to say, such a new approach, which is not specific to LiFePO4, offers great opportunities for the low-temperature synthesis of new electrode materials.