New observation of morphology of Li[Fe1−xMnx]PO4 nano-fibers (x=0, 0.1, 0.3) as a cathode for lithium secondary batteries by electrospinning process

The key issue with lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) is poor ionic conductivity. Electrospinning is one of the best way to increase a surface area. Therefore, electrospinning was presently adopted to solve the kinetic problems associated with the solid-state diffusion of Li+ intercalation. In this work, nano-fibers of Li[Fe1−xMnx]PO4 (x=0, 0.1, 0.3) were prepared from sol–gel precursor by electrospinning. After calcinations of the precursor nano-fibers at 800 °C, Li[Fe1−xMnx]PO4 nano-fibers (x=0, 0.1, 0.3) with a diameter of 100–500 nm were successfully obtained. X-ray diffraction (XRD), videoscope, field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) analyses were performed to characterize the properties of the prepared materials. The purpose of the present study is to investigate the morphology change of nano-sized Li[Fe1−xMnx]PO4 (x=0, 0.1, 0.3) obtained through electrospinning. Li[Fe1−xMnx]PO4 (x=0.1, 0.3) nano-fibers displayed a rough surface due to the increased manganese content. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of its kind.

► Li[Fe1−xMnx]PO4 nano-fibers(x=0, 0.1, 0.3) have been prepared using electrospinning.
► The prepared nano-fibers had diameters ranging from 100 to 500 nm.
► The surface of nano-fibers became rougher when manganese was increased.