Template-free synthesis of nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons for CO2 adsorption and supercapacitor electrodes

Nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons with controllable nitrogen content are prepared via a template-free method by direct carbonization of melamine-resorcinol-terephthaldehyde networks. This new nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons with tunable hierarchical porosity and chemical composition have good potential applications in the gas separation and electrochemical energy storage. [Display omitted] Nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons (NHPCs) with controllable nitrogen content were prepared via a template-free method by direct carbonization of melamine-resorcinol-terephthaldehyde networks. The synthetic approach is facile and gentle, resulting in a hierarchical pore structure with modest micropores and well-developed meso-/macropores, and allowing the easy adjusting of the nitrogen content in the carbon framework. The micropore structure was generated within the highly cross-linked networks of polymer chains, while the mesopore and macropore structure were formed from the interconnected 3D gel network. The as-prepared NHPC has a large specific surface area of 1150m2·g−1, and a high nitrogen content of 14.5wt.%. CO2 adsorption performances were measured between 0°C and 75°C, and a high adsorption capacity of 3.96mmol·g−1 was achieved at 1bar and 0°C. Moreover, these nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons exhibit a great potential to act as electrode materials for supercapacitors, which could deliver high specific capacitance of 214.0F·g−1 with an excellent rate capability of 74.7% from 0.1 to 10 A·g−1. The appropriate nitrogen doping and well-developed hierarchical porosity could accelerate the ion diffusion and the frequency response for excellent capacitive performance. This kind of new nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons with controllable hierarchical porosity and chemical composition may have a good potential in the future applications.