Characterization of nanoparticles of LiMn2O4 synthesized by citric acid sol–gel method

Nanoparticles of lithium manganese oxide (LiMn2O4) spinel oxides have been synthesized from aqueous solutions of metal acetate containing citric acid as a chelating agent by a sol–gel method. The influence of calcination temperature on the physicochemical properties of LiMn2O4 powders in air atmosphere has been analyzed by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD) and electron microscopic techniques. The thermal behavior of the material has been examined by thermogravimetry (TG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). Two sharp and well-defined peaks obtained from cyclic voltammetry of Li/1 M LiPF6-EC/DEC electrolyte/LiMn2O4 cell reveal that the LiMn2O4 particles are highly crystalline and insertion–extraction mechanism occur at two stages in the 4 V region.