Application of R3/R5 Microwave Digestion in the Determination of Elements in Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4)

Abstract
Lithium-ion batteries are primarily composed of cathode materials, anode materials, separators, and electrolytes. Among commercially available cathode materials, lithium cobalt oxide (LiCoO₂), lithium manganese oxide (LiMn2O4), lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO₄), and ternary composites are widely used. Graphite-based carbon materials remain the mainstream choice for anodes.

Accurate determination of lithium content in cathode materials is critical for battery quality control. The GB/T 30835 standard specifies the use of microwave digestion combined with inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) for lithium measurement. Microwave digestion offers rapid sample decomposition in sealed vessels with benefits including low blank values, high parallelism, and convenient operation.