A Synthetic Route for High-Yield Phospho-Olivine Cathode Material for Use in Lithium-Ion Batteries through Liquid-State Salt Medium

In this work, LiFePO₄ (LFP) particles have been synthesized via an ionothermal route (through use of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate ionic liquid—‘[EMI][TfS]’, a liquid state salt—as reaction medium). Our methodology allows for a highly scalable procedure suitable for industrial implementation due to its (1) low-temperature requirements for synthesis reaction, (2) high yield of produced LFP active material, (3) potential for open-environment synthesis, and (4) relative environmental benignity. Synthesized material had been characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and x-ray diffraction (XRD). Reported is an analysis on particle morphology and crystallinity of LFP particles synthesized through our ionothermal route.  Such a methodology holds highly promising for large-scale production of LiFePO4 lithium-ion batteries.