Synthesis and Characterization of Iron Disulfide for Cathodic Material

Currently there is a growing technological demand for electrochemical systems of high energy density drainage combined with reliability. Among these systems, the thermal batteries and batteries for vehicles with iron disulfide cathodes are promising technological options. Standard iron disulfide can be obtained by purifying natural pyrite; however, the synthesis of a pure iron disulfide brings some challenge because the main target is to obtain this compound as powders with some characteristics that can assure its application in those high-technological systems. This work aims to characterize an iron disulfide (FeS₂) synthesized by a gas–solid reaction between sulfur and hematite and, also, to appreciate briefly the availability of the method and to evaluate some of the obtained material properties. Among the techniques used for characterization include X-ray diffraction associated with Rietvelt method, scanning electron microscopy equipped with X-ray energy dispersive, chemical elementary analysis (ICP-OES), thermal analysis, and gas pycnometry. The results indicated that the applied method has produced an iron disulfide with interesting properties for electrochemical applications, and complete conversion was reached for the experiments conducted at 773 K (500 °C) for 30 minutes.