A facile strategy for recovering spent LiFePO4 and LiMn2O4 cathode materials to produce high performance LiMnxFe1-xPO4/C cathode materials

To successfully recycle spent LiFePO₄ and LiMn₂O₄ batteries and simultaneously produce high performances nano-LiMn_xFe_1-xPO₄/C powders, a mechanical activation-assisted method was effectively applied in the recycling process. The technique consists of the separation and purification of spent cathode materials, high-energy mechanical mixing of raw materials and a commonly used heat treatment processes. The structural and morphological characterization results indicate that nano-sized LiMn_xFe_1-xPO₄/C composites with uniform amorphous carbon coatings were successfully synthesized from spent LiFePO₄ and LiMn₂O₄ batteries. The electrochemical performance testing results show that the recovered nano-LiMn_xFe_1-xPO₄/C cathodes possess promising Li-ion storage properties. LiMn_0.5Fe_0.5PO₄/C displays high capacities of 143.2, 138.1, and 127.6 mAh g^?1 at 0.1, 1, and 2C rates, respectively. The obtained cathodes also show outstanding cycling stabilities of 98.47% and 97.58% for LiMn_0.5Fe_0.5PO₄/C and LiMn_0.8Fe_0.2PO₄/C after 100 cycles, respectively. This work indicates that recycling spent LiFePO₄ and LiMn₂O₄ to produce high-performance LiMn_xFe_1-xPO₄/C is a promising strategy for recycling spent LiFePO₄ and LiMn₂O₄ based lithium ion batteries (LIBs) in an efficient and environmentally friendly manner.