Enabling stable and high-rate of an olivine-type cathode LiFePO4 for Li-ion batteries by using graphene nanoribbons as conductive agent

Abstract

In this study, graphene nanoribbons (GNBs) were utilized as a conductive agent for the olivine structure-based cathode LiFePO4 to facilitate the fast redox reaction and enable a high-rate battery performance. As a result, the cathodes comprising 5 wt% graphene nanoribbons and 10 wt% conductive carbon nanoparticles exhibited the maximum capacity, 163.25 mAh.g−1 at 0.1C and 130.60 mAh.g−1 at 2C with excellent capacity retention after 100 cycles. In addition, graphene nanoribbons demonstrate positive impacts on the charge transfer process. Still, the high concentration of GNBs in the cathode weakens the adhesion properties and will need further optimization in the slurry mixing process.