Facile spray drying route for large scale nitrogen-doped carbon-coated Li4Ti5O12 anode material in lithium-ion batteries

Nitrogen-doped carbon-coated Li4Ti5O12 composite (Li4Ti5O12@N-C) was prepared by the spray drying method with a following solid-state calcination. The structure, morphology and electrochemical performance of Li4Ti5O12@N-C were investigated using XRD, SEM, EDS, TEM and electrochemical measurements. Well-crystallized Li4Ti5O12@N-C with no impurity could be obtained at temperature of 800 °C owing to the uniform precursor powder. In the as-prepared microspheres, the nitrogen-doped carbon (N-C) around the Li4Ti5O12 particles provided a three-dimensional (3D) conductive matrix which could facilitate the transport of electrons and Li+-ions. Compared to the carbon-coated Li4Ti5O12 anode (Li4Ti5O12@C), the Li4Ti5O12@N-C exhibited superior electrochemical property, delivering a specific discharge capacity of 143.6 mAh g− 1 at high current density of 10 C with capacity retention of 95.3% over 200 cycles. The results reveal that this synthesis route and N-doping strategy are effective to prepare high performance Li4Ti5O12 anode for advanced energy storage.