Preparation of activated carbon with low ash content and high specific surface area from coal in the presence of KOH

An activated carbon with ash content less than 10% and specific surface area more than 1 600 m 2 /g was prepared from coal and the effect of K containing compounds in preparation of coal based activated carbon was investigated in detail in this paper. KOH was used in co carbonization with coal, changes in graphitic crystallites in chars derived from carbonization of coal with and without KOH were analyzed by X ray diffraction (XRD) technique, activation rates of chars with different contents of K containing compounds were deduced, and resulting activated carbons were characterized by nitrogen adsorption isotherms at 77 K and iodine numbers. The results showed that the addition of KOH to the coal before carbonization can realize the intensive removal of inorganic matters from chars under mild conditions, especially the efficient removal of dispersive quartz, an extremely difficult separated mineral component in other processes else. Apart from this, KOH demonstrates a favorable effect in control over coal carbonization with the goal to form nongraphitizable isotropic carbon precursor, which is a necessary prerequisite for the formation and development of micro pores. However, the K containing compounds such as K 2 CO 3 and K 2 O remaining in chars after carbonization catalyze the reaction between carbon and steam in activation, which leads to the formation of macro pores. In the end an innovative method, in which KOH is added to coal before carbonization and K containing compounds are removed by acid washing after carbonization, was proposed for the synthesis of quality coal based activated carbon.

High surface area biocarbon monoliths for methane storage

New energy sources that reduce the volume of harmful gases such as SO_(x)and NO_(x)released into the atmosphere are in constant development.Natural gas,primarily made up of methane,is being widely used as one reliable energy source for heating and electricity generation due to its high combustion value.Currently,natural gas accounts for a large portion of electricity generation and chemical feedstock in manufacturing plastics and other commercially important organic chemicals.In the near future,natural gas will be widely used as a fuel for vehicles.Therefore,a practical storage device for its storage and transportation is very beneficial to the deployment of natural gas as an energy source for new technologies.In this tutorial review,biomaterials-based carbon monoliths(CMs),one kind of carbonaceous material,was reviewed as an adsorbent for natural gas(methane)adsorption and storage.

Nickel catalysts supported on MgO with different specific surface area for carbon dioxide reforming of methane

In this paper, three kinds of MgO with different specific surface area were prepared, and their effects on the catalytic performance of nickel catalysts for the carbon dioxide reforming of methane were investigated. The results showed that MgO support with the higher specific surface area led to the higher dispersion of the active metal, which resulted in the higher initial activity. On the other hand, the specific surface area of MgO materials might not be the dominant factor for the basicity of support to chemisorb and activate CO2, which was another important factor for the performance of catalysts. Herein, Ni/MgO(CA) catalyst with proper specific surface area and strong ability to activate CO2exhibited stable catalytic property and the carbon species deposited on the Ni/MgO(CA) catalyst after 10 h of reaction at 650 ?C were mainly activated carbon species.

Preparation of Zirconia-Ceria Powders with High Specific Surface Area

Zirconia-ceria mixed oxide powders were prepared by high temperature aging method.The effects of the temperature and the time of aging, cerium content and calcination on powder performance were studied.The result shows that high temperature aging is an efficient way of preparation of ZrO2-CeO2 mixed oxide powders with high specific surface area and good thermal stability, and that addition of a small amount of cerium to hydrous zirconia can promote the preparation of high specific surface area powders.

Highly reversible lead-carbon battery anode with lead grafting on thecarbon surface

A novel C/Pb composite has been successfully prepared by electmless plating to reduce the hydrogenevolution and achieve the high reversibility of the anode of lead-carbon battery （LCB）. The depositedlead on the surface of C/Pb composite was found to be uniform and adherent to carbon surface. Becauselead has been stuck on the surface of C/Pb composite, the embedded structure suppresses the hydrogenevolution of lead-carbon anode and strengthens the connection between carbon additive and sponge lead.Compared with the blank anode, the lead-carbon anode with C/Pb composite displays excellent charge-discharge reversibility, which is attributed to the good connection between carbon additives and leadthat has been stuck on the surface of C/Pb composite during the preparation process. The addition of CIPb composite maintains a solid anode structure with high specific surface area and power volume, andthereby, it plays a significant role in the highly reversible lead-carbon anode.

Nitrogen and sulfur dual-doped high-surface-area hollow carbon nanospheres for efficient CO2 reduction

The electrochemical reduction of CO2(CO2 RR) can substantially contribute to the production of useful chemicals and reduction of global CO2 emissions. Herein, we presented N and S dual-doped high-surface-area carbon materials(SZ-HCN) as CO2 RR catalysts. N and S were doped by one-step pyrolysis of a N-containing polymer and S powder. ZnCl2 was applied as a volatile porogen to prepare porous SZ-HCN. SZ-HCN with a high specific surface area(1510 m2 g–1) exhibited efficient electrocatalytic activity and selectivity for CO2 RR. Electrochemical measurements demonstrated that SZ-HCN showed excellent catalytic performance for CO2-to-CO reduction with a high CO Faradaic efficiency(~93%) at-0.6 V. Furthermore, SZ-HCN offered a stable current density and high CO selectivity over at least 20 h continuous operation, revealing remarkable electrocatalytic durability. The experimental results and density functional theory calculations indicated that N and S dual-doped carbon materials required lower Gibbs free energy to form the COOH* intermediate than that for single-N-doped carbon for CO2-to-CO reduction, thereby enhancing CO2 RR activity.

Effects of specific surface area of metallic nickel particles on carbon deposition kinetics

Carbon deposition on nickel powders in methane involves three stages in different reaction temperature ranges. Temperature programing oxidation test and Raman spectrum results indicated the formation of complex and ordered carbon structures at high deposition temperatures. The values of I（D）/I（G） of the deposited carbon reached 1.86, 1.30, and 1.22 in the first, second, and third stages, respectively. The structure of carbon in the second stage was similar to that in the third stage. Carbon deposited in the first stage rarely contained homogeneous pyrolytic deposit layers. A kinetic model was developed to analyze the carbon deposition behavior in the first stage. The rate-determining step of the first stage is supposed to be interfacial reaction. Based on the investigation of carbon deposition kinetics on nickel powders from different resources, carbon deposition rate is suggested to have a linear relation with the square of specific surface area of nickel particles.

Carbon cathode with heteroatom doping and ultrahigh surface area enabling enhanced capacitive behavior for potassium-ion hybrid capacitors

Potassium-ion hybrid capacitors(PIHCs)are widely regarded as highly promising energy storage devices,due to their exceptional energy density,impressive power density,and abundant potassium resources.Unfortunately,restricted by the inherent capacitive storage mechanism,the carbon cathodes possess a much lower specific capacity than battery-type anodes.Therefore,designing high-performance carbon cathodes is extremely urgent for the development of PIHCs.Herein,N,O codoped porous carbon(NOPC)was fabricated through the NaCl hard template method and combined KOH/melamine chemical activation technique,displaying the characteristics of abundant N/O content(4.7 at%/16.9 at%),ultrahigh specific surface area(3092 m^(2)g^(-1))and hierarchical pore network.The designed NOPC cathode delivers a high specific capacity(164.4 mAh.g^(-1)at 0.05 A.g^(-1))and superior cyclability(95.1%retention ratio at 2 A·g^(-1)over 2500 cycles).Notably,the adjustable ratio of micropores to mesopores facilitates the achievement of the optimal bal-ance between capacity and rate capability.Moreover,the pseudocapacitance can be further augmented through the incorporation of N/O functional groups.As expected,the graphite//NOPC based PIHC possesses a high energy density of 113 Wh·kg-at 747 W·kg^(-1)and excellent capacity retention of 84.4% fter 400 cycles at 1.0 A·g^(-1).This work introduces a novel strategy for designing carbon cathodes that enhances the electrochemical performance of PIHCs.

A statistical reappraisal of the relationship between liquid limit and specific surface area, cation exchange capacity and activity of clays

More than 500 datasets from the literature have been used to evaluate the relationships of specific surface area (SSA),cation exchange capacity (CEC) and activity versus the liquid limit (LL).The correlations gave R^2 values ranging between 0.71 and 0.92.Independent data were also used to validate the correlations.Estimated SSA values slightly overestimate the measured SSA up to 100 m^2/g.Regarding the estimated CEC values,they overestimated the measured CEC values up to 20 meq/(100 g).A probabilistic approach was performed for the correlations of SSA,CEC and activity versus LL.The analysis shows that the relations of SSA,CEC and activity with LL are robust.Using the LL values,it is possible to assess other basic engineering properties of clays.

Construction of the hierarchical porous biochar with an ultrahigh specific surface area for application in high-performance lithium-ion capacitor cathode

Biochar with a highly accessible specific surface area can display a higher performance when it is used as the cathode of lithium-ion capacitors.Facing the complex composition and diversity of biomass precursors,there is a lack of a universally applicable method to construct hierarchical porous biochar controllably.In this work,a multi-stage activation strategy combining the feature of different activation methods is proposed for this target.To confirm the porous characteristic in prepared samples,N_(2) adsorption-desorption and transmission electron microscope were used.As the optimal sample,BC-P3K4S had the highest specific surface area of 3583.3 m^(2) g^(−1).Evaluated as the electrode for a lithium-ion capacitor,BC-P3K4S displayed a capacity of 139.1 mAh g^(−1) at 0.1 A g^(−1).After coupling it with pre-lithiated hard carbon,the full device exhibited a high energy density of 129.3 W h kg^(−1) at 153 W kg^(−1).The work outlined herein offers some insights into the preparation of hierarchical porous biochar from complex biomass by multistep activation method.

N,P-codoped porous carbon derived from chitosan with hierarchical N-enriched structure and ultra-high specific surface Area toward high-performance supercapacitors

In this work,a facile"carbonization-activation"strategy is developed to synthesize N,P-codoped hierarchical porous carbon.Phosphoric acid is innovatively introduced during the hydrothermal process to achieve in-situ P doping as well as create abundant pores,and the employment of sodamide is of vital importance to simultaneously serve as activating agent and N-source to succeed a high-level N doping.Thus,the obtained samples exhibit a unique three-dimensional hierarchical structure with an ultra-high specific surface area(3646 m^(2)g^(-1))and ultra-high N-doping level(9.81 at.%).Computational analyses confirm that N,P co-doping and higher N content can enhance active sites and widen potential differences of carbon materials to improve their capacitance.The as-prepared carbon materials demonstrate superior electrochemical performances,such as an ultra-high capacitance of 586 Fg^(-1)at 1 Ag^(-1),a superior rate capability of 409 Fg^(-1)at 20 Ag^(-1),and excellent long-term stability of 97%capacitance retention after10,000 cycles in 6 M KOH.Moreover,an assembled symmetric supercapacitor delivers a high energy density of 28.1 Wh kg^(-1)at the power density of 450 W kg^(-1)in 1 M Na_(2)SO_(4),demonstrating a great potential for applications in supercapacitors.

Effect of activated carbon and electrolyte on properties of supercapacitor

Effect of activated carbon and electrolyte on electrochemical properties of organic supercapacitor was investigated. The results show that specific surface area and mesoporosity of activated carbon influence specific capacitance. If specific surface area is larger and mesoporosity is higher, the specific capacitance will become bigger. Specific surface area influences resistance of carbon electrode and consequently influences power property and pore size distribution. If specific surface area is smaller and mesoporosity is higher, the power property will become better. Ash influences leakage current and electrochemical cycling stability. If ash content is lower, the performance will become better. The properties of supercapacitor highly depend on the electrolyte. The compatibility of electrolyte and activated carbon is a determining factor of supercapacitor’s working voltage. LiPF6/(EC+EMC+DMC) is inappropriate for double layer capacitor. MeEt3NPF4/PC has higher specific capacitance than Et4NPF4/PC because methyl’s electronegativity value is lower than ethyl and MeEt3N+ has more positive charges and stronger polarizability than Et4N+ when an ethyl is substituted by methyl.

Experimental evaluation of activated carbon derived from South Africa discard coal for natural gas storage

Lacking in literature is the use of discard coal to produce activated carbon and in its subsequent use in the storage of natural gas. In this study, the characterization and gas storage evaluation of a largely porous activated carbon with large surface area synthesized from discard coal were investigated. Discard coals are waste material generated from coal beneficiation process. In developing the activated carbon, chemical activation route with the use of KOH reagent was applied. The effects of KOH/discard coal weight ratio (1:1, 2.5:1, 4:1), temperature (400-800 ℃) and particle size (0.15-0.25 mm, 0.25-0.5 mm, 0.5-1 mm) on the adsorptive properties of the activated carbon were methodically evaluated and optimized using response surface methodology. The synthesized activated carbon was characterized using BET, SEM/EDS, and XRD. The results showed that for each activation process, the surface area and pore volume of the resulting activated carbon increased with increased temperature and KOH/discard coal weight ratio. The maximum surface area of 1826.41 m2/g, pore volume of 1.252 cm^3/g and pore size of 2.77 nm were obtained at carbonization temperature of 800 ℃ and KOH/discard coal weight ratio of 4:1. Methane and nitrogen adsorption data at high pressure were fitted to Toth isotherm model with a predictive accuracy of about 99%. Adsorption parameters using the Toth model provides useful information in the design of adsorbed natural gas storage system. According to the requirements of adsorbent desired for natural gas storage, it could be stated that the synthesized activated carbon could well be applied for natural gas storage.

Characterization of porous cobalt hexacyanoferrate and activated carbon electrodes under dynamic polarization conditions in a sodium-ion pseudocapacitor

We report here the activated carbon and cobalt hexacyanoferrate composite,which is applied as the electrode materials in symmetric supercapacitors containing a 1.0 M Na_(2)SO_(4) aqueous electrolyte.This novel material combines high specific surface area and electrochemical stability of activated carbon with the redox properties of cobalt hexacyanoferrate,resulting in maximum specific capacitance of 329 F g^(-1) with large voltage working window of 2.0 V.Electrochemical studies indicated that cobalt hexacyanoferrate introduces important pseudocapacitive properties accounting for the overall charge-storage process,especially when I<0.5 A g^(-1).At lower gravimetric currents(e.g.,0.05 A g^(-1))and up to 1.0 V,the presence of cobalt hexacyanoferrate improves the specific energy for more than 300%.In addition,to better understanding the energy storage process we also provided a careful investigation of the electrode materials under dynamic polarization conditions using the in situ Raman spectroscopy and synchrotron light Xray diffraction techniques.Interesting complementary findings were obtained in these studies.We believe that this novel electrode material is promising for applications regarding the energy-storage process in pseudocapacitors with long lifespan properties.

Catalytic Pyrolyses of Rayon and the Effect on Activated Carbon Fiber

The catalytic pyrolyses of rayon have been studied respectively by thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) when rayon was treated with phosphoric acid (PA), three ammonium phosphate salts and ammonium sulfate (AS). The air is favorable to the catalysis of dibasic ammonium phosphate (DAP), but not to those of ADP, PA, AP, and AS obviously. It is put forward that a peak’s shape character can be described with the ratio of height to half-height-width (H/W /2) of the peak on a differential thermo-gravimetric (DTG) curve. A flat cracking peak, presenting a more moderate dehydration reaction, has a smaller ratio and could lead to higher carbonization and activation yields. The experimental results prove this view. According to expectation, the order of catalysis is: DAP≥ADP>PA> APAS no catalyst.

Optimal Electrochemical Performances of CO_2 Activated Carbon Aerogels for Supercapacitors

Activated carbon aerogels（ACAs） derived from sol-gel polycondensation of resorcinol （R） and formaldehyde （F） were pyrolyzed under Ar flow and activated in CO2 atmosphere. The morphology of ACAs was characterized by scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and the structural properties were determined by N2 adsorption at 77 K. The results show that ACAs have a typical three-dimensional nanonetwork structure composing of cross-linking of carbon nanoparticles. The specific surface area and the total pore volume remarkably increase with increasing activation time while the previous porous structure still remains. The specific capacitance of the 950-10-ACA electrode can reach up to 212.3 F/g in 6 mol/L KOH electrolyte. The results of constant-current charge-discharge testing indicate that the ACAs electrodes present fast charge- discharge rate and long cycle life （about 98% capacitance retained after 3000 charge-discharge cycles at 1.25 mA/cm2）. Lower internal resistances can be achieved for 950-10-ACA electrode in KOH electrolyte. Our investigations are very important to improve the wettability and electrochemical performance of electrode for supercapacitors.

Enhanced Capacitive Characteristics of Activated Carbon by Secondary Activation

The effect of the improvement of commercial activated carbon(AC) on its specific capacitance and high rate capability of double layer(dl) charging/discharging process has been studied. The improvement of AC was carried out \%via\% a secondary activation under steam in the presence of catalyst NiCl\-2, and the suitable condition was found to be a heat treatment at about 875 ℃ for 1 h. Under those conditions, the discharge specific capacitance of the improved AC increases up to 53.67 F/g, showing an increase of about 25% as compared with that of as-received AC. The good rectangular-shaped voltammograms and A.C. impedance spectra prove that the high rate capability of the capacitor made of the improved AC is enhanced significantly. The capacitance resistance(RC) time constant of the capacitor containing the improved AC is 1\^74 s, which is much lower than that of the one containing as-received AC(an RC value of 4.73 s). It is noted that both kinds of AC samples show a similar specific surface area and pore size distribution, but some changes have taken place in the carbon surface groups, especially a decrease in the concentration of surface carbonyl groups after the improvement, which have been verified by means of X-photoelectron spectroscopy. Accordingly, it is suggested that the decrease in the concentration of surface carbonyl groups for the improved AC is beneficial to the organic electrolyte ion penetrating into the pores, thus leading to the increase in both the specific capacitance and high rate capability of the supercapacitor.

Characteristics of Chemical Modified Activated Carbons from Bamboo Scaffolding

In this study, bamboo scaffolding was used to produce activated carbon by carbonization at 600 ℃ and 900 ℃with the purge of nitrogen. The 600 ℃ char was then further modified chemically by acids and alkalis by reflux for 6 hours. The produced chars were then characterized by nitrogen adsorption isotherm, He pyncometry, pH, elemental analysis and Boehm titration. For most of the chemically modified carbons, the micropore surface areas and volumes have increased compared with the 600 ~C char, while the mesopore surface areas and volumes slightly decreased, which may have been due to the dissolving of some of the permeated inorganic matter and oxidizing deposited carbon that blocks the pore openings. For the acidic modified carbons, larger amounts of acidic groups were present in the carbons after being activated by phosphoric acid, phosphoric acid furth, er treated with 2 mol-L-1nitric-acid, and calcium hydroxide. Although carbon treated with 2 mol.L-1 and 5 mol·L-1 nitric acid also produced high acidity, the surface areas and pore volumes were relatively low, due to the destruction of pores by nitric acid oxidation. The reduction of porosity may impair the adsorption capacity.

Removal of Dyes from Wastewater by Adsorption onto Activated Carbon: Mini Review

Nowadays, wastewater from dyeing industries became a challenging issue in the world. Researchers have reported several techniques to treat those effluents based on their projects. Adsorption is the most common method because of cheap, simple and effective method. In this work, activated carbon was used for dye adsorption purpose. This adsorbent has high surface area and high porosity to remove dye. This review highlighted some important results of the last few years regarding the use of activated carbon in wastewater treatment. Research findings supported that adsorption process is spontaneous in nature. Adsorption data confirmed Langmuir model, indicating the chemisorption occurred.

Optimization of Preparation Conditions of Activated Carbons Based on the Shells of Ricinodendron heudoltii

The purpose of this work is to prepare better activated carbons from the shells of Ricinodendron Heudelotii by chemical activation with sulfuric acid (H2SO4) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH). The process was optimized by a full factorial design (2K) based on the analysis of the external specific surface area of sixteen (16) activated carbons prepared according to the parameters of the preparation. This active analysis reveals that under the preparation conditions, good carbons are obtained for a sodium hydroxide concentration equal to 1 M, an impregnation time of 24 h and carbonization at 500˚C for 1 h. The external specific surface of this carbon is 358 m2 • g-1. The characteristics of this prepared carbon are as follows: a pH at zero point charge (pHpzc) of 8.2, a predominantly amorphous structure, a basic character and a low ash content (4.2%). It also has surface functions;the lactonic and carbonyl groups (C=O) at 1600 cm-1 and the carboxylate groups (O-H or C-O) at 1340 cm-1.