Nanosized LiFePO
4 is a kind of promising material for high performance lithium ion batteries; however, the synthesis of nanosized LiFePO
4 still has some challenges in forming an orthorhombic phase in atmospheric liquid phase and protecting the LFP nanoparticles from aggregation, etc. In this work, LiFePO
4 nanocrystals were synthesized through a high-temperature (350 掳C) liquid-phase reduction method. The size and morphology of nanocrystals can be readily controlled by tuning the ratio of solvents, and the size-dependent behavior of lithium storage performance is also observed. After a carbon-coating surface treatment, rhombic-shaped LiFePO
4 nanocrystals display excellent lithium storage properties with high reversible capacities and good cycle life (141.0 mAh g
鈥? at 0.5 C after 50 cycles etc.). This method can be extended to prepare LiMnPO
4 nanorods by substituting iron source with manganese salt.
Keywords:
lithium iron phosphate; liquid-phase reduction process; electrochemical performance