Surface structural and energetic heterogeneity of carbon materials prepared from corn grains using steam and H3 PO4 -steam activations

Enhanced triglyceride adsorption by steam-activated bamboo charcoal based on molecular dynamics investigations

In this study, ordinary bamboo charcoal was activated at 750 °C with a steam flow rate of 6.25 L/min for 1.5 h. The effects of triglyceride adsorption by activated bamboo charcoal were investigated using an orthogonal design, and the adsorption mechanism was explored through molecular dynamics. Experimental results revealed that the adsorption capacity of activated bamboo charcoal for triglycerides reached 27.0%. The activated bamboo charcoal exhibited a specific surface area of 560.0 m2/g. The average pore diameter of activated bamboo charcoal was 1.6 nm, whereas that of ordinary bamboo charcoal was 7.2 nm. Molecular dynamics simulations revealed an interaction energy of - 145.12 kcal/mol between the molecular layers of activated bamboo charcoal and the triglyceride molecules, as well as an interaction energy of - 132.73 kcal/mol between the molecular layers of ordinary bamboo charcoal and the triglyceride molecules. The quantity of triglyceride molecules adsorbed by activated bamboo charcoal per gram was estimated to be 1.77 × 1021 while ordinary bamboo charcoal could adsorb merely 1.56 × 1019 triglyceride molecules per gram. This stark contrast in adsorption capacity underscores the superior performance of activated bamboo charcoal than its counterpart.

Functional Carbon from Nature: Biomass-Derived Carbon Materials and the Recent Progress of Their Applications

Biomass is considered as a promising source to fabricate functional carbon materials for its sustainability, low cost, and high carbon content. Biomass-derived-carbon materials (BCMs) have been a thriving research field. Novel structures, diverse synthesis methods, and versatile applications of BCMs have been reported. However, there has been no recent review of the numerous studies of different aspects of BCMs-related research. Therefore, this paper presents a comprehensive review that summarizes the progress of BCMs related research. Herein, typical types of biomass used to prepare BCMs are introduced. Variable structures of BCMs are summarized as the performance and properties of BCMs are closely related to their structures. Representative synthesis strategies, including both their merits and drawbacks are reviewed comprehensively. Moreover, the influence of synthetic conditions on the structure of as-prepared carbon products is discussed, providing important information for the rational design of the fabrication process of BCMs. Recent progress in versatile applications of BCMs based on their morphologies and physicochemical properties is reported. Finally, the remaining challenges of BCMs, are highlighted. Overall, this review provides a valuable overview of current knowledge and recent progress of BCMs, and it outlines directions for future research development of BCMs.

Influence of chemical composition, porosity and fractal dimension on the electrical conductivity of carbon blacks

Carbonaceous materials analyzed in this investigation were six nanometric particle size carbon blacks. Carbons were texturally characterized by gas adsorption (N2, 77 K), helium and mercury density and mercury porosimetry measurements. Electrical conductivity was determinated by impedance spectroscopy, at room temperature. Several works related to the electrical conductivity and to textural parameters of carbon blacks, such as: porosity, specific surface area, etc., have been carried out. However, there are a type of parameters, such as the fractal dimension, the percentage of macropores, the particle size, or the packing density, that are also related to the electrical conductivity, but they have not been previously investigated. In this work, it has been researched how the increase in interparticle/intraparticle porosity decreases the electrical conductivity of the samples studied. Therefore, it is possible to conclude that in this study a complete research work on electrical conductivity has been carried out.