Electrochemical properties of mechanically alloyed Ni-doped FeS2 cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries

Abstract In this study, fine cathode materials Fe 0.8 Ni 0.2 S 2 and Fe 0.9 Ni 0.1 S 2 , with mean particle sizes of 3.39 μm and 2.79 μm, respectively, can be prepared simply through mechanical alloying (MA). The contents of nickel show a significant effect on the electrochemical behavior of the composites, as shown the charge/discharge capacity of 320/285 mAh/g is maintained for over 20 cycles for the Li/Fe 0.8 Ni 0.2 S 2 cell, higher than that for the Li/Fe 0.9 Ni 0.1 S 2 with 284/233 mAh/g when tested ranging from 0.8 to 2.4 V at 0.1 C. In addition, the electronic conductivity seemed also enhanced with high nickel doping content, leading to the improvement of the cycling stability of the FeS 2 based electrodes.