Hierarchical B-doped carbon nanotube with enhanced electrochemical lithium storage

Rechargeable lithium ion batteries have spurred intense research to resolve the ever-increasing energy and environmental issues due to their efficient high energy density. Herein we demonstrate a simple pyrolysis route to fabricate novel hierarchical B-doped tubular carbon nanostructures. The unique tubular nanostructures along with B-doped effect could represent a high activity for surface-dependent electrochemical reaction processes. Experimental results reveal that the as-synthesized B-doped carbon nanotube show excellent electrochemical performances for lithium storage application. The B-doped carbon nanotube could deliver a high initial discharge capacity (2862.8 mAh g−1) with Coulombic efficiency of 43.91% at 100 mA g−1 current density. Even at a higher current density of 500 mA g−1, the B-doped carbon nanotube could exhibit an enhanced initial discharge capacity of 1800.9 mAh g−1, and the reversible lithium storage capacity still retains at 851.3 mAh g−1 over 100 cycles, suggesting a good cycling stability. The excellent electrochemical properties of the as-synthesized B-doped carbon nanotube could be ascribed to the unique tubular architecture, which could offer large active surface with more lithium-insertion channels and significantly reduce lithium ion diffusion distance. The cost-efficient synthesis and excellent lithium storage properties make the B-doped carbon nanotube as a promising anode material for high-performance lithium ion batteries.