A highly-aligned lamellar structure of ice-templated LiFePO4 cathode for enhanced rate capability

Abstract

Ice-templating has been widely investigated in various energy-related fields owing to the simple and inexpensive process of this method which results highly-ordered lamellar structures. Lamellar structures offer larger active areas for ionic conductivity and a short mean free path of electrons. Here, an ice-templated LiFePO4 cathode was introduced to achieve higher rate capability with a minimized carbon source. The fabricated highly-aligned porous structure demonstrates superior rate performance during the discharge process compared to electrodes which use conventional slurry casting. This enhanced performance is mainly attributed to the aligned porous structure, which facilitates the rapid transfer of electrons from the bulk to a current collector and also provides a good distribution of contact sites with Li ions in the electrolytes.