Electrochemical behaviour of chemically lithiated LixV2O5 phases (0.9≤x≤1.6)

LixV2O5 phase (x=0.9, 1.16 and 1.6) has been prepared by chemical reduction of V2O5 using n-butyllithium. Electrochemical charge–discharge characteristics of fresh and aged compounds have been investigated. Lithium ions cannot be fully deintercalated during the charge due to a chemical oxidation in air. This effect is more pronounced when x increases and with ageing. New behavior and attractive properties are reported for Li1.16V2O5 electrodes aged for a few days in air. A specific capacity of 300 Ah/kg is available in the range 1.8–3.8 V after the 20th cycle, which represents an improvement of 15–20% compared to V2O5.