Effect of PEG molecular weight on the crystal structure and electrochemical performance of LiV3O8

This paper describes systematic studies on the effect of polyethylene glycol (PEG) molecular weight on the crystal structure and particularly the electrochemical performance of LiV3O8. Scanning electron microscopy results indicate that after the decomposition of PEG, the structure of resultant products exhibits differences in morphology (shape, particle size, and specific surface area). The electrochemical results show that LiV3O8 cathode material treated by PEG (mean molecular weight of 10,000) has greater initial discharge capacity and better cyclic stability than other materials treated with PEG of different molecular weight. Its initial discharge capacity is 282.1 mAh g−1 and maintains 222.2 mAh/g after 50 cycles in 0.5 C rates (150 mA g−1).