Recycle of LiFePO4 cathode materials from spent lithium ion batteries and the electrochemical performance

Spent LiFePO4 cathode materials were recycled after calcination in N2 atmosphere to refill different mole fractions of Li2CO3 by a solid phase method. The results of electrochemical test show that the recycled LiFePO4/C materials can effectively recuperate the loss of reversible lithium via refilling 10% mole fraction of Li2CO3 and exhibit the excellent electrochemical performance as cathode materials in lithium-ion batteries. Their specific discharge capacity can reach 157 mA·h/g at 0.1 C rate, and 73 mA·h/g even at 20 C rate. The discharge capacity has no decay after 200 cycles at 0.5 C rates. It is indicated that this simple method can effectively regenerate the spent LiFePO4 cathode materials to improve their electrochemical performance and provide an effective route for the recovery and reuse of the spent LiFePO4 cathode materials in lithium-ion batteries. © 2015, Chinese Ceramic Society. All right reserved.