Water based processing of LiFePO4/C cathode material for Li-ion batteries utilizing freeze granulation

A water based solid state synthesis of LiFePO4 has been conducted by utilizing freeze granulation. Various processing conditions were tested and achieved powder properties were characterized by density. XRD, specific surface area, carbon content, conductivity and SEM. Freeze granulation, a novel method for precursor preparation was shown to be an effective method to provide high degree of homogeneity prior to calcination and high ultimate yield of pure LiFePO4. Cathodes were manufactured by water based as well as NMP system based tape casting. A commercial LiFePO4/C powder was also characterized and used to manufacture cathodes as comparison in this study. Charge cycling tests showed promising results with high capacity and long term stability, well in the range of what the commercial powder provided. Post-milling of calcined powder prior to paste preparation for tape casting tended, however, to retard the capacity owing to disturbed carbon distribution and loss of conductivity of the LiFePO4/C. In comparison with the solvent system for cathode manufacturing, the water based system gave similar cell performance, illustrating the possibility to apply a more environmentally sustainable processing of Li-battery cells. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.