Facile synthesis of nitrogen-enriched mesoporous carbon for carbon dioxide capture

To investigate carbon dioxide adsorption behaviors, we prepared mesoporous carbon (MC) materials that incorporated framework nitrogen functional groups via a facile polymerization-induced colloid aggregation (PICA) procedure, where the nitrogen content varied as a function of carbonization temperature. The prepared MCs had high specific surface areas (e.g., 974 m2/g) with well-developed mesopores. The highest carbon dioxide adsorption capacity of 106 mg/g at 25 °C was achieved with the MCs-800 sample (carbonization temperature of 800 °C). We found that the materials prepared in this study were highly effective for carbon dioxide capture, because the nitrogenous functional groups in the MCs enhanced their affinities for acidic carbon dioxide. •Mesoporous carbons (MCs) containing in-frame incorporated nitrogen were synthesized.•A facile polymerization-induced colloid aggregation (PICA) was used to make the MCs.•The MCs had high SBET (974 m2/g) with well-developed mesopores.•The CO2 adsorption capacity of 107 mg/g was achieved at 25 °C/1 bar.