Naturally Nitrogen and Calcium-Doped Nanoporous Carbon from Pine Cone with Superior CO<inf>2</inf> Capture Capacities

Abstract

© 2016 American Chemical Society. A highly effective nanoporous CO2sorbent with naturally doped nitrogen and calcium elements, derived from pine-cone biomass, shows superior CO2capture performance. The sorbent was produced from carbonization and KOH activation of dried pine cones, and possess a highly nanoporous structure with a specific surface area and a pore volume up to 2110 m2/g and 0.89 cm3/g, respectively. The highest CO2uptake of 20.9 wt % (under 1 bar CO2and 25°C) was achieved in a porous structure with relatively high levels of nitrogen and calcium dopants inherited from the biomass precursor. Further porosity and elemental analyses show that CO2sorption is enhanced by both highly developed ultramicroporous structure (<0.7 nm) and well-dispersed nitrogen and metal dopants in carbon sorbents.