Structural and Electrochemical Properties of Pristine and B-Doped Materials for the Anode of Li-Ion Secondary Batteries

The structure and anode performance of Li‐ion batteries for three different forms of carbon materials (powder, spheres, fibers) and three boron‐doped samples have been studied comparatively. The characterization and properties were obtained by X‐ray diffraction, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and electrochemical measurements. The B 1s peak of boron‐doped graphite I was split into three peaks at 185.6, 187.7, and 189.8 eV, which were assigned to boron in boron carbide, in a boron cluster, or boron bound to incorporated nitrogen atoms, respectively. The electrochemical introduction of Li ions takes place at ∼40 mV higher potential in boron‐doped samples than in undoped samples, presumably because the substitutional boron acts as an electron acceptor in the graphite lattice. Also, it is suggested that the electrochemical properties of boron‐doped graphitized materials depend on the structural geometry and chemical composition of the pristine host materials.