Comparative investigation of microporous and nanosheet LiVOPO4 as cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries

LiVOPO4 cathode materials are synthesized by freeze drying and spray drying methods. X-ray diffraction results reveal that the products obtained using the two methods are both in the beta-LiVOPO4 phase. SEM images demonstrate that the stacked nanosheets LiVOPO4 were synthesized by freeze drying, whereas the microporous ones were synthesized by spray drying. Upon comparing the two methods, results indicate that the stacked nanosheets LiVOPO4 synthesized by freeze drying exhibit much better electrochemical performance than microporous LiVOPO4 synthesized by spray drying. The stacked nanosheets can deliver a capacity of 128.4 mA h g(-1) at 0.1 C, and possess favorable capacity at rates of 1 C and 2 C.