Hydrothermal synthesis of hierarchical LiFePO4 microspheres for lithium ion battery

Hierarchical LiFePO4 microspheres were prepared by hydrothermal process in the sucrose solution. The microspheres showed a uniform size distribution of about 10 lm and were assembled by many rough sheets. Moreover, these sheets were consist of densely aggregated 300 nm particles. The presence of sucrose played an important role in the formation of hierarchical LiFePO4 microspheres. Compared with the spindle-like shape LiFePO4 particles obtained in deionized water, the hierarchical LiFePO4 microspheres displayed enhanced tap density, improved rate capability and cycling stability, which can be potential cathode material for lithium ion batteries. (C) 2012 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.