Synthesis and Characterization of Nanocrystalline Spinel Li4Ti5O12 Anode in Polyol Medium for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Recent advancements toward the development of efficient, stable and environmentally safe anodes for lithium-ion batteries have clearly indicated the emergence of Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) as a prospective candidate with interesting applications. In fact LTO which belongs to the spinel family possesses certain favorable inherent properties that include a 3-D structural framework, almost “zero-strain” character towards lithium-ion insertion, fair ion mobilities and excellent cycle life [1, 2]. With the advent of the nanotechnology revolution, the impacts of particle size distribution and morphology on the dynamical properties of materials have gained significant improvements [3, 4]. In this aspect, it has been realized that nano-crystalline LTO is certain to have far reaching implications perhaps, even suited for high power lithium battery application as electric vehicles (EV), power tools or hybrid electric vehicles (HEV). On the backdrop of the discussion highlighted above, the present work reports the synthesis of nanocrystalline Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) anode by a chemical wet synthesis technique namely, the solvothermal method, using apparently cost-effective precursors in a polyol medium. The as-prepared sample has been examined by heating it at various temperatures viz., 400, 500 and 600 °C. The structural and electrochemical properties of this apparently low-temperature solvothermal based anode have been analyzed against a counterpart LTO, synthesized by the commonly used high-temperature solid state reaction technique, using XRD, TEM and FE-SEM studies.