Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering (한국표면공학회지)

The Korean Institute of Surface Engineering (한국표면공학회)
권호 표지
DOI QR코드

DOI QR Code

Direct growth of carbon nanotubes on LiFePO4 powders and the application as cathode materials in lithium-ion batteries

LiFePO4 분말 위 탄소나노튜브의 직접 성장과 리튬이온전지 양극재로의 적용

  • Hyun-Ho Han (Interdisciplinary Program in Advanced Functional Materials and Devices Development, Graduate School of Kangwon National University) ;
  • Jong-Hwan Lee (Interdisciplinary Program in Advanced Functional Materials and Devices Development, Graduate School of Kangwon National University) ;
  • Goo-Hwan Jeong (Interdisciplinary Program in Advanced Functional Materials and Devices Development, Graduate School of Kangwon National University)
  • 한현호 (강원대학교 대학원 고기능 소자 및 소재 기술 고도화 협동과정) ;
  • 이종환 (강원대학교 대학원 고기능 소자 및 소재 기술 고도화 협동과정) ;
  • 정구환 (강원대학교 대학원 고기능 소자 및 소재 기술 고도화 협동과정)
  • Received : 2024.07.21
  • Accepted : 2024.07.24
  • Published : 2024.08.31
Download PDF
⟨ Previous Next ⟩

Abstract

We demonstrate a direct growth of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the surface of LiFePO4 (LFP) powders for use in lithium-ion batteries (LIB). LFP has been widely used as a cathode material due to its low cost and high stability. However, there is a still enough room for development to overcome its low energy density and electrical conductivity. In this study, we fabricated novel structured composites of LFP and CNTs (LFP-CNTs) and characterized the electrochemical properties of LIB. The composites were prepared by direct growth of CNTs on the surface of LFP using a rotary chemical vapor deposition. The growth temperature and rotation speed of the chamber were optimized at 600 ℃ and 5 rpm, respectively. For the LIB cell fabrication, a half-cell was fabricated using polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and carbon black as binder and conductive additives, respectively. The electrochemical properties of LIBs using commercial carbon-coated LFP (LFP/C), LFP with CNTs grown for 10 (LFP/CNTs-10m) and 30 min(LFP/CNTs-30m) are comparatively investigated. For example, after the formation cycle, we obtained 149.3, 160.1, and 175.0 mAh/g for LFP/C, LFP/CNTs-10m, and LFP/CNTs-30m, respectively. In addition, the improved rate performance and 111.9 mAh/g capacity at 2C rate were achieved from the LFP/CNTs-30m sample compared to the LFP/CNTs-10m and LFP/C samples. We believe that the approach using direct growth of CNTs on LFP particles provides straightforward solution to improve the conductivity in the LFP-based electrode by constructing conduction pathways.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

본 과제(결과물)는 교육부와 한국연구재단의 재원으로 지원을 받아 수행된 3단계 산학연협력 선도대학 육성사업(LINC 3.0)의 연구결과입니다.

References

  1. J.B. Goodenough, Y. Kim, Challenges for rechargeable Li batteries, Chemistry of Materials, 22 (2010) 587-603. 
  2. J. Xu, H.R. Thomas, R.W. Francis, K.R. Lum, J. Wang, B. Liang, A review of processes and technologies for the recycling of lithium-ion secondary batteries, Journal of Power Sources, 177 (2008) 512-527. 
  3. M. Wentker, M. Greenwood, J. Leker, A bottom-up approach to lithium-ion battery cost modeling with a focus on cathode active materials, Energies, 12 (2019) 504. 
  4. S.P. Chen, D. Lv, J. Chen, Y.H. Zhang, F.N. Shi, Review on defects and modification methods of LiFePO4 cathode material for lithium-ion batteries, Energy & Fuels, 36 (2022) 1232-1251. 
  5. X. Zhou, F. Wang, Y. Zhu, Z. Liu, Graphene modified LiFePO4 cathode materials for high power lithium ion batteries, Journal of Materials Chemistry, 21 (2011) 3353-3358. 
  6. Y.D. Li, S.X. Zhao, C.W. Nan, B.H. Li, Electrochemical performance of SiO2-coated LiFePO4 cathode materials for lithium ion battery, Journal of Alloys and Compounds, 509 (2011) 957-960. 
  7. B. Ramasubramanian, S. Sundarrajan, V. Chellappan, M. Reddy, S. Ramakrishna, K. Zaghib, Recent development in carbon-LiFePO4 cathodes for lithium-ion batteries: A mini review, Batteries, 8 (2022) 133. 
  8. Y. Cai, D. Huang, Z. Ma, H. Wang, Y. Huang, X. Wu, Q. Li, Construction of highly conductive network for improving electrochemical performance of lithium iron phosphate, Electrochimica Acta, 305 (2019) 563-570. 
  9. J. Quan, S. Zhao, D. Song, T. Wang, W. He, G. Li, Comparative life cycle assessment of LFP and NCM batteries including the secondary use and different recycling technologies, Science of The Total Environment, 819 (2022) 153105. 
  10. K. Saravanan, P. Balaya, M. Reddy, B. Chowdari, J.J. Vittal, Morphology controlled synthesis of LiFePO4/C nanoplates for Li-ion batteries, Energy & Environmental Science, 3 (2010) 457-463. 
  11. A. Klein, P. Axmann, M. Wohlfahrt-Mehrens, Synergetic effects of LiFe0.3Mn0.7PO4-LiMn1.9Al0.1O4 blend electrodes, Journal of Power Sources, 309 (2016) 169-177. 
  12. W. Wei, L. Guo, X. Qiu, P. Qu, M. Xu, L. Guo, Porous micro-spherical LiFePO4/CNTs nanocomposite for high-performance Li-ion battery cathode material, RSC Advances, 5 (2015) 37830-37836. 
  13. X.L. Wu, Y.G. Guo, J. Su, J.W. Xiong, Y.L. Zhang, L.J. Wan, Carbon-nanotube-decorated nano-LiFePO4@C cathode material with superior high-rate and low-temperature performances for lithium-ion batteries, Advanced Energy Materials, 3 (2013) 1155-1163. 
  14. G.T.K. Fey, Y.G. Chen, H.M. Kao, Electrochemical properties of LiFePO4 prepared via ball-milling, Journal of Power Sources, 189 (2009) 169-178. 
  15. G.H. Jeong, A. Yamazaki, S. Suzuki, Y. Kobayashi, Y. Homma, Behavior of catalytic nanoparticles during chemical vapor deposition for carbon nanotube growth, Chemical Physics Letters, 422 (2006) 83-88. 
  16. G.H. Jeong, S. Suzuki, Y. Kobayashi, A. Yamazaki, H. Yoshimura, Y. Homma, Effect of nanoparticle density on narrow diameter distribution of carbon nanotubes and particle evolution during chemical vapor deposition growth, Journal of Applied Physics, 98 (2005) 124311. 
  17. W.B. Hawley, J. Li, Electrode manufacturing for lithium-ion batteries-Analysis of current and next generation processing, Journal of Energy Storage, 25 (2019) 100862. 
  18. H. Liu, X. Cheng, Y. Chong, H. Yuan, J.Q. Huang, Q. Zhang, Advanced electrode processing of lithium ion batteries: A review of powder technology in battery fabrication, Particuology, 57 (2021) 56-71. 
  19. S. Gao, Y. Su, L. Bao, N. Li, L. Chen, Y. Zheng, J. Tian, J. Li, S. Chen, F. Wu, High-performance LiFePO4/C electrode with polytetrafluoroethylene as an aqueous-based binder, Journal of Power Sources, 298 (2015) 292-298. 
  20. E. Avci, Enhanced cathode performance of nano-sized lithium iron phosphate composite using polytetrafluoroethylene as carbon precursor, Journal of Power Sources, 270 (2014) 142-150. 
  21. S. Cheng, J. Wu, Air-cathode preparation with activated carbon as catalyst, PTFE as binder and nickel foam as current collector for microbial fuel cells, Bioelectrochemistry, 92 (2013) 22-26. 
  22. C.T. Wirth, C. Zhang, G. Zhong, S. Hofmann, J. Robertson, Diffusionand reaction-limited growth of carbon nanotube forests, ACS Nano, 3 (2009) 3560-3566. 
  23. H.H. Han, J.H. Lee, G.H. Jeong, Investigation of direct growth behavior of carbon nanotubes on cathode powder materials in lithium-ion batteries, Journal of Surface Science and Engineering, 57 (2024) 22-30. 
  24. M.S. Dresselhaus, G. Dresselhaus, R. Saito, A. Jorio, Raman spectroscopy of carbon nanotubes, Physics Reports, 409 (2005) 47-99. 
  25. S. Wang, J. Zhang, O. Gharbi, V. Vivier, M. Gao, M.E. Orazem, Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, Nature Reviews Methods Primers, 1 (2021) 41. 
  26. M.J. Lain, E. Kendrick, Understanding the limitations of lithium ion batteries at high rates, Journal of Power Sources, 493 (2021) 229690.