The Progress of Carbon Coating Modification on the Surface of Lithium Iron Phosphate Cathode Materials

Abstract

Due to the urgent need for sustainable development of human society, new energy materials have become one of the hot topics for major powers in the world. Thereinto, lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO₄) as a battery cathode material owing to its high safety, less pollution, low cost, which has achieved remarkable results. The low electrical conductivity and slow diffusion of lithium ions have led to a number of improvements. Carbon materials are inexpensive, non-toxic, non-polluting, widely available and highly conductive. Contemporarily, carbon cladding modification on the surface of lithium iron phosphate to improve its multiplicative performance and cycle life is currently the most widely used and economically feasible method. This paper first briefly describes the development history, basic structure and principle of lithium-ion batteries. Subsequently, we review three different surface carbon coating synthesis methods and analyse the impact of each method on battery performance, and looks into the future of lithium iron phosphate cathode materials. These results shed light on carbon cladding as a surface modification technique, which can significantly improve the multiplicity and cycling performance of LiFePO₄ when applied to the field.