• Carbon letters
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• 제25권
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• pp.103-112
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• 2018

Hierarchically porous, chemically activated carbon materials are readily derived from biomass using hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and chemical activation processes. In this study, empty fruit bunches (EFB) were chosen as the carbon source due to their sustainability, high lignin-content, abundance, and low cost. The lignin content in the EFB was condensed and carbonized into a bulk non-porous solid via the HTC process, and then transformed into a hierarchical porous structure consisting of macro- and micropores by chemical activation. As confirmed by various characterization results, the optimum activation temperature for supercapacitor applications was determined to be $700^{\circ}C$. The enhanced capacitive performance is attributed to the textural property of the extremely high specific surface area of $2861.4m^2\;g^{-1}$. The prepared material exhibited hierarchical porosity and surface features with oxygen functionalities, such as carboxyl and hydroxyl groups, suitable for pseudocapacitance. Finally, the as-optimized nanoporous carbons exhibited remarkable capacitive performance, with a specific capacitance of $402.3F\;g^{-1}$ at $0.5A\;g^{-1}$, a good rate capability of 79.8% at current densities from $0.5A\;g^{-1}$ to $10A\;g^{-1}$, and excellent life cycle behavior of 10,000 cycles with 96.5% capacitance retention at $20A\;g^{-1}$.

• 한국진공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국진공학회 2016년도 제50회 동계 정기학술대회 초록집
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• pp.403.2-403.2
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• 2016

Porous materials play a significant role in energy storage and conversion applications such as catalyst support for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell. In particular, hierarchical porous materials with both micropores (poresize, ${\delta}$ < 2 nm) and regularly arranged mesopores (2 nm < ${\delta}$ < 50 nm) are known to greatly enhance the efficiency of catalytic reactions by providing enormous surface area as well as fast mass transport channels for both reactants and products from/to active sites. Although it is generally agreed that the microscopic structure of the porous materials directly affects the performance of these catalytic reactions, neither detailed mechanisms nor fundamental understanding are available at hand. In this study, we propose an atomistic model of hierarchical nanostructured porous carbons (HNPCs) in molecular dynamics simulations. By performing a systematic study, we found that structural features of the HNPC can be independently altered by tuning specific synthesis parameters, while remaining other structures unchanged. In addition, we show some structure-property relations including mechanical and gas transport properties.

• Carbon letters
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• 제25권
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• pp.117-121
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• 2018

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• 제35권12호
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• pp.3465-3474
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• 2014

Porous silica particles are the most prevailing raw material for stationary phases of liquid chromatography. During a long period of time, various methodologies for production of porous silica particles have been proposed, such as crashing and sieving of xerogel, traditional dry or wet process preparation of conventional spherical particles, preparation of hierarchical mesoporous particles by template-mediated pore formation, repeated formation of a thin layer of porous silica upon nonporous silica core (core-shell particles), and formation of specific silica monolith followed by grinding and calcination. Recent developments and applications of useful porous silica particles will be covered in this review. Discussion on sub-$3{\mu}m$ silica particles including nonporous silica particles, carbon or metal oxide clad silica particles, and molecularly imprinted silica particles, will also be included. Next, the individual preparation methods and their feasibilities will be collectively and critically compared and evaluated, being followed by conclusive remarks and future perspectives.

• Carbon letters
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• 제15권1호
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• pp.1-14
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• 2014

Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) with diameters in the submicron and nanometer range exhibit high specific surface area, hierarchically porous structure, flexibility, and super strength which allow them to be used in the electrode materials of energy storage devices, and as hybrid-type filler in carbon fiber reinforced plastics and bone tissue scaffold. Unlike catalytic synthesis and other methods, electrospinning of various polymeric precursors followed by stabilization and carbonization has become a straightforward and convenient way to fabricate continuous CNFs. This paper is a comprehensive and brief review on the latest advances made in the development of electrospun CNFs with major focus on the promising applications accomplished by appropriately regulating the microstructural, mechanical, and electrical properties of as-spun CNFs. Additionally, the article describes the various strategies to make a variety of carbon CNFs for energy conversion and storage, catalysis, sensor, adsorption/separation, and biomedical applications. It is envisioned that electrospun CNFs will be the key materials of green science and technology through close collaborations with carbon fibers and carbon nanotubes.

• Carbon letters
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• 제18권
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• pp.11-17
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• 2016

Monolithic carbon foams with hierarchical porosity were prepared from polyurethane templates and resol precursors. Mesoporosity was achieved through the use of soft templating with surfactant Pluronic F127, and macroporosity from the polyurethane foams was retained. Conditions to obtain high porosity materials were optimized. The best materials have high specific surface areas (380 and 582 m² g^-1, respectively) and high electrical conductivity, which make them good candidates for supports in sensors. These materials showed an almost linear dependence between the potential and the pH of aqueous solutions.

• 청정기술
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• 제28권2호
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• pp.97-102
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• 2022

Lithium sulfur (Li-S) batteries have attracted considerable attention as a promising candidate for next-generation power sources due to their high theoretical energy density, low cost, and eco-friendliness. However, the poor electrical conductivity of sulfur and its insoluble discharging products (Li₂S₂/Li₂S), large volume changes, severe self-discharge, and dissolution of lithium polysulfide intermediates result in rapid capacity fading, low Coulombic efficiency, and safety risks, hindering Li-S battery commercial development. In this study, a three-dimensionally (3D) connected hierarchical porous carbon framework (HPCF) derived from waste sunflower seed shells was synthesized as a sulfur host for Li-S batteries via a chemical activation method. The natural 3D connected structure of the HPCF, originating from the raw material, can effectively enhance the conductivity and accessibility of the electrolyte, accelerating the Li⁺/electron transfer. Additionally, the generated micropores of the HPCF, originated from the chemical activation process, can prevent polysulfide dissolution due to the limited space, thereby improving the electrochemical performance and cycling stability. The HPCF/S cell shows a superior capacity retention of 540 mA h g^-1 after 70 cycles at 0.1 C, and an excellent cycling stability at 2 C for 700 cycles. This study provides a potential biomass-derived material for low-cost long-life Li-S batteries.

• Carbon letters
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• 제28권
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• pp.47-54
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• 2018

High surface carbon aerogels with hierarchical and tunable pore structure were prepared using ionic liquid as carbon precursor via a simple salt templating method. The as-prepared carbon aerogels were characterized by nitrogen sorption measurement and scanning electron microscopy. Through instant visual observation experiments, it was found that salt eutectics not only serve as solvents, porogens, and templates, but also play an important role of foaming agents in the preparation of carbon aerogels. When the pyrolyzing temperature rises from 800 to $1000^{\circ}C$, the higher temperature deepens the carbonization reaction further to form a nanoporous interconnected fractal structure and increase the contribution of super-micropores and small mesopores and improve the specific surface area and pore volume, while having few effects on the macropores. As the mass ratio of ionic liquid to salt eutectics drops from 55% to 15%, that is, the content of salt eutectics increases, the salt eutectics gradually aggregate from ion pairs, to clusters with minimal free energy, and finally to a continuous salt phase, leading to the formation of micropores, uniform mesopores, and macropores, respectively; these processes cause BET specific surface area initially to increase but subsequently to decrease. With the mass ratio of ionic liquids to salts at 35% and carbonization temperature at $900^{\circ}C$, the specific surface area of the resultant carbon aerogels reached $2309m^2g^{-1}$. By controlling the carbonization temperature and mass ratio of the raw materials, the hierarchically porous architecture of carbon aerogels can be tuned; this advantage will promote their use in the fields of electrodes and adsorption.

• 한국재료학회지
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• 제31권9호
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• pp.502-510
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• 2021

Hierarchically porous carbon materials with high nitrogen functionalities are extensively studied as high-performance supercapacitor electrode materials. In this study, nitrogen-doped porous carbon textile (N-PCT) with hierarchical pore structures is prepared as an electrode material for supercapacitors from a waste cotton T-shirt (WCT). Porous carbon textile (PCT) is first prepared from WCT by two-step heat treatment of stabilization and carbonization. The PCT is then nitrogen-doped with urea at various concentrations. The obtained N-PCT is found to have multi-modal pore structures with a high specific surface area of 1,299 m² g^-1 and large total pore volume of 1.01 cm³ g^-1. The N-PCT-based electrode shows excellent electrochemical performance in a 3-electrode system, such as a specific capacitance of 235 F g^-1 at 1 A g^-1, excellent cycling stability of 100 % at 5 A g^-1 after 1,000 cycles, and a power density of 2,500 W kg^-1 at an energy density of 3.593 Wh kg^-1. Thus, the prepared N-PCT can be used as an electrode material for supercapacitors.

• 센서학회지
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• 제31권4호
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• pp.244-248
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• 2022

Recently, several studies on the development of superhydrophobic surfaces using various nano-sized carbon-based materials have been conducted. The superhydrophobic surfaces developed using carbon soot have advantages such as low processing cost and remarkable physical and chemical properties. However, their durability is low. To address this problem, in this study, a superhydrophobic surface with high durability and a multilayer structure was fabricated using ethanol vapor treatment. Candle soot was deposited on an aluminum substrate coated with paraffin wax, and a micro-nano multilayer structure with a size of several micrometers was fabricated via ethanol vapor treatment. The fabricated superhydrophobic surface was confirmed to have a contact angle of at least 156° and high durability. Finally, it was confirmed that ethanol vapor not only changed the nanostructure of carbon but also affected the durability of the structure.