A TiB₂ wettable cathode coating was deposited on a graphite carbon cathode material via atmospheric plasma spraying (APS). The microstructure and phase composition of the TiB₂ coating were analyzed via scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The wettability and corrosion resistance of the coating were studied in a molten-aluminum electrolytic system. The results showed that the surface of the TiB₂ coating prepared via plasma spraying was flat and that the main phase of the coating was TiB₂. The wettability between the TiB₂ coating and liquid aluminum was better than that between graphite cathode carbon block and liquid aluminum. The abilities of the TiB₂ coating and graphite cathode carbon block to resist sodium (Na) penetration and prevent molten salt corrosion were compared through a corrosion test. The TiB₂ coating was found to have better resistance to Na penetration and better refractory cryolite corrosion resistance than graphite cathode carbon block.

A study of boron impurities deposited on a Si(100) surface in a SiHCl₃-BCl₃-H₂ system is reported in this paper, using periodic density functional theory with generalized gradient approximation (GGA). The results show that the discrete distances of BCl₃ and SiHCl₃ from the surface of the Si(100) unit cell are 1.873 Å and 2.340 Å, respectively, and the separation energies are −35.2549 kcal/mol and −10.64 kcal/mol, respectively. BCl₃ and SiHCl₃ are mainly adsorbed on the surface of the Si(100) unit cell in particular molecular orientations: the positive position and the hydrogen bottom-two-front position from the analysis of the bond length change and adsorption energy. The adsorption of SiHCl₃ and BCl₃ is accompanied by a charge transfer from the molecule to the surface of the unit cell of 0.24 and 0.29 eV, respectively. BCl₃ reacts more readily than SiHCl₃ with the Si(100) surface, resulting in the deposition of boron impurities on the polysilicon surface.