Li4Ti5O12 precursors have been synthesized by means of a citric acid aided route using TiCl4 as a raw material. The pyrolysis of the precursors has been performed in air and in argon. Comparison shows that pyrolyzing citrate precursors in argon instead of air one can obtain a material having twice smaller particle size and much better electrochemical properties (specific capacity and discharge rate). Specifically, Li Li4Ti5O12 cells with Li4Ti5O12 pyrolyzed in argon return 148 mA.h/g upon 1.0C current load, 70 mA h/g upon 30C current load and 32 mA h/g upon 60C current load. These values exceed those obtained with a commercial Li4Ti5O12 material. For Li4Ti5O12 pyrolyzed in air, increasing discharge currents from 1.0C to 30C decreases discharge capacity from 125 to 40 mA h/g. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.