Preparation and electrochemical characterization of lithium cobalt oxide nanoparticles by modified sol–gel method

Uniformly distributed nanoparticles of LiCoO2 have been synthesized through the simple sol–gel method in presence of neutral surfactant (Tween-80). The powders were characterized by X-ray diffractometry, transmission electron microscopy and electrochemical method including charge–discharge cycling performance. The powder calcined at a temperature of 900 °C for 5 h shows pure phase layered LiCoO2. The results show that the particle size is reduced in presence of surfactant as compared to normal sol–gel method. Also, the sample prepared in presence of surfactant and calcined at 900 °C for 5 h shows the highest initial discharge capacity (106 mAh g−1) with good cycling stability as compared to the sample prepared without surfactant which shows the specific discharge capacity of 50 mAh g−1.