Self-templated synthesis of boron-doped porous carbon by chemical interaction of 2LiBH4·CO2 with CO2

• A new compound of 2LiBH 4 ·CO 2 is synthesized for the first time. • A self-template method is developed to synthesize heteroatom–doped carbon from CO 2 . • Self-template mechanism is revealed based on new reactions of CO 2 with 2LiBH 4 ·CO 2 . • A capacity of 890 mAh g –1 of BPC is retained after 1200 cycles at 1.0 A g –1 . The realization of heteroatom doping can enable carbon functional materials to have superior physiochemical properties via tailoring electron and ion distribution. However, the facile synthesis of heteroatom-doped carbon materials without CO 2 emission from precursor is a major challenge for low-carbon utilization of carbon materials. Herein, we report a facile self–templated method to synthesize boron–doped porous carbon derived from CO 2 based on the new reactions of 2LiBH 4 ·CO 2 with CO 2 . Boron–doped porous carbon is produced via a consecutive reaction between 2LiBH 4 ·CO 2 and CO 2 . The solid intermediate products with porous structure are formed at the first-step reaction. The newly developed porous solid products serve as the template for the chemical vapor deposition of gaseous intermediate products at the second-step reactions. The self-templated mechanism is demonstrated to form porous templates at initial stage for depositing carbon and boron sources on templates to produce boron-doped porous carbon. As a lithium storage material, it delivers a reversible capacity as high as ∼1660 mAh g −1 at 0.2 A g –1 and ∼890 mAh g −1 at 1.0 A g −1 after 1200 cycles. This finding opens a low-carbon and self-templated strategy to synthesize heteroatom–doped carbon functional materials from CO 2 .