Facile synthesis of sandwich-structured Li3V2(PO4)3/carbon composite as cathodes for high performance lithium-ion batteries

• A sandwich-structured LVP/C is prepared by a facile soft chemistry route.
• MOF-derived nitrogen-doped carbon is used to improve the conductivity.
• The structure can accommodate volume changes in repeated cycles in LIBs.
• The LVP/C shows excellent rate capability and long-term cycling stability.

A sandwich-structured Li3V2(PO4)3/carbon (LVP/C) composite has been facilely prepared through a soft chemistry route and its electrochemical performance has been investigated. The conductivity of the electrode material can be greatly improved by the introduction of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) derived nitrogen-doped carbon, leading to its superior rate performance in lithium ion batteries. The carbon particles with diameters of 200–300 nm are uniformly dispersed in the composite. Meanwhile, the interconnected carbon particles form a carbon matrix surrounding the LVP flakes, constructing a sandwich-like structure. This structure provides ample space for accommodating the volume change of LVP during repeated cycles, and highly improves the electronic conductivity of the composites. Thanks to this, high capacity retention can be attained in ultralong cycles (83% after 2500 cycles) at high rate (5C).