Suppressive effect of initial irreversibility by a Pt catalyst at the carbon anode in a Li-ion battery

For the purpose of improving the performance of carbon anode materials for Li-ion batteries, electrolytes formed by adding a Pt catalyst to the electrolyte were examined. When a Pt wire/Pt powder was added into the electrolyte, the initial irreversible capacity was reduced considerably relative to those of an unadded preparation. The origin of the observed effect on the initial irreversible capacity was investigated through electrochemical and chemical analyses, ac impedance, FTIR-ATR spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopy. The introduction of a Pt catalyst to the electrolyte provided a low-resistance interface on the carbon anode, while, in the absence of a Pt catalyst, PF6- decomposition products at the anode interface impeded the charge-discharge cycling of the carbon anode.