Electrochemical properties of mesoporous iron phosphate in lithium batteries

Mesoporous iron phosphate containing CTAB as templating agent was synthesized and characterized by means of X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and TGA techniques. The mesoporous material shows a highly ordered structure, that collapses when submitted to extraction with acetate ions. The treatment of the exchanged samples at 573 K under nitrogen atmosphere leads to amorphous phases with an electrochemical behaviour typical of carbon-coated iron phosphate electrodes. The existence of this coating, proceeding from incomplete pyrolysis of the organic exchange agent, enhances the electronic properties of the system, as evidenced by galvanostatic experiments and impedance spectroscopy measurements.