Boron-doped carbon microspheres as a new catalyst for rechargeable Li-CO2 batteries

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Li-CO2 batteries are thought to be a promising technology for it can combine storing energy with mitigating the “greenhouse effect.” However, CO2 electrochemical reduction reaction is known to be a kinetically sluggish one. Therefore, researchers are committed to exploring catalysts with high catalytic activity to drive the reaction. In this study, boron-doped carbon microspheres (B-CMs) with mesoporous structure and large specific surface area were prepared using one-step impregnation followed by calcination. Active sites are increased by the positively charged boron atoms in B-CMs, thus, endowing higher catalytic performance for Li-CO2 batteries. The Li-CO2 battery with B-CMs cathode exhibited excellent performance, delivering a high discharge capacity of 17,429 mA h g−1 and 11,975 mA h g−1 at the current density of 200 mA g−1 and 500 mA g−1, respectively, and can stably run 90 cycles at the current density of 200 mA g−1 with a limited capacity of 1000 mA h g−1.