Facile electrodeposition of MFe ₂ O ₄ (M=Co, Fe)on carbon cloth as air cathodes for Li-O ₂ batteries

To develop high energy Li-O ₂ batteries (LOBs), it is important to optimize the air cathode structure. Therefore, MFe ₂ O ₄ @carbon cloth (M = Co, Fe)has been prepared by electrodeposition to be an effective cathode for LOBs. This cathode can effectively avoid the disturbance of a polymer binder during the discharge-charge process. Electrocatalytic and electrochemical measurements show that MFe ₂ O ₄ @carbon cloth can enhance the ORR/OER kinetics. In particular, CoFe ₂ O ₄ @carbon cloth exhibits a good initial discharge specific capacity (7259 mA h/g at 170 mA/g)and long cycle life (over 100 cycles at the upper limit specific capacity of 500 mA h/g at 170 mA/g). The favorable electrocatalytic properties of CoFe ₂ O ₄ @CC are ascribed to the presence of Co ²⁺ .