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Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials
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Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials

A special issue of C (ISSN 2311-5629).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2018) | Viewed by 66097

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Martin Oschatz

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Colloid Chemistry, Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Am Mühlenberg 1, 14476 Potsdam (OT Golm), Germany
Interests: synthesis of high surface area carbon; pore structure design; characterization of porous carbon; carbon for energy; surface chemistry; adsorption phenomena; carbon in catalysis, heteroatom-doping of porous carbon; functional carbon nitrides

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Functional carbon-based materials are crucial components in many applications, such as electrochemical energy storage (e.g., in battery or supercapacitor electrodes), molecular transformations (e.g., as catalyst supports or metal-free catalysts), adsorption-based processes (e.g., in gas or water purification), as sensors, or in engineering, to mention a few. Nanoporous sp2-based carbon materials with high specific surface area and pore volume are of particular interest because they combine the typical advantages of carbon (i.e., high chemical/thermal stability and electrical conductivity) with a large interface area between carbon and the surrounding phases as well as beneficial effects of nano-confinement. Such materials play and will play a key role for a sustainable development of our society in the 21st century.

Various structural features of the high surface area carbons, such as the pore size, pore connectivity, pore geometry, surface chemistry/heteroatom-content, electronic properties, or particle morphology have to be tailored in order to achieve optimum performance in the respective application. These features should be precisely controlled to illuminate the influence of the materials' characteristics in the respective field of use.

We are welcoming submissions of manuscripts dealing with all aspects of controlled and sustainable synthesis, new characterization techniques, and applications of nanoporous carbon-based materials to this special issue of C-Journal of Carbon Research. Contributions that draw important structure-performance-relationships are particularly appreciated.

We are looking forward to your submissions!

With kind regards,
Dr. Martin Oschatz
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. C is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • controlled synthesis of porous carbons
  • heteroatom-doping of porous carbons
  • modification of porous carbons
  • hybrid materials with porous carbon
  • porous carbons in electrochemistry
  • porous carbons in adsorption
  • porous carbons in catalysis
  • characterization of porous carbons
  • sustainable precursors for porous carbons

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 11202 KiB  
Article
Boehm Titration Revisited (Part II): A Comparison of Boehm Titration with Other Analytical Techniques on the Quantification of Oxygen-Containing Surface Groups for a Variety of Carbon Materials
by Jan Schönherr, Johannes R. Buchheim, Peter Scholz and Philipp Adelhelm
C 2018, 4(2), 22; https://doi.org/10.3390/c4020022 - 11 Apr 2018
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 10831
Abstract
The use of the Boehm titration (BT) method as an analytical tool for the quantification of oxygen-containing surface groups is systematically investigated for oxidized carbon black, carbon nanotubes and two active carbons with specific surface areas between 60 and 1750 m2 g [...] Read more.
The use of the Boehm titration (BT) method as an analytical tool for the quantification of oxygen-containing surface groups is systematically investigated for oxidized carbon black, carbon nanotubes and two active carbons with specific surface areas between 60 and 1750 m2 g−1. The accuracy of the BT method is quantitatively compared with results from elemental analysis (EA), temperature programmed desorption (TPD), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Overall, the results from TPD are in line with the values obtained by BT. Both show the equal ratio of the oxygen groups to each other. Within the series of carbon samples, all methods provide similar trends for the total oxygen content yet the absolute numbers are deviating significantly. Reasons for these discrepancies are discussed and linked to the specific characteristics of the different methods. As the BT method is a solution based method, it only probes the surface fraction of the carbon that is accessible to the base solution. That means, it probes the relevant fraction for applications where carbon is in contact to aqueous solutions. Overall, the BT method can be conveniently applied to a broad range of carbon materials as long as the samples are sufficiently hydrophilic and of the enough sample amount is provided. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials)
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13 pages, 11742 KiB  
Article
Boehm Titration Revisited (Part I): Practical Aspects for Achieving a High Precision in Quantifying Oxygen-Containing Surface Groups on Carbon Materials
by Jan Schönherr, Johannes R. Buchheim, Peter Scholz and Philipp Adelhelm
C 2018, 4(2), 21; https://doi.org/10.3390/c4020021 - 6 Apr 2018
Cited by 69 | Viewed by 15216
Abstract
Practical aspects of the Boehm titration method are evaluated for obtaining reliable results in the quantification of oxygen-containing surface groups in a short time. Analytical criteria such as accuracy, repeatability, precision, and robustness are applied. Oxidized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) are used as [...] Read more.
Practical aspects of the Boehm titration method are evaluated for obtaining reliable results in the quantification of oxygen-containing surface groups in a short time. Analytical criteria such as accuracy, repeatability, precision, and robustness are applied. Oxidized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) are used as the model substance. Different reaction bases (NaHCO3(aq), Na2CO3(aq), NaOH(aq)) are applied and treatment times are studied. We also show that smaller amounts of carbon material can be reliably analyzed by using an autotitrator combined with a pH electrode. We find that indirect titration with Na2CO3 results in the highest titration precision and accuracy despite the lower base strength compared with NaOH. Therefore, CO2 impurities do not have to be removed and only 7 min is necessary for one titration. The titration error with respect to the proposed method is 0.15% of the aliquot volume. The mixing method during the carbon treatment with bases (stirring, shaking, ultrasound treatment) has no influence on the result as long as one allows a few hours for the reaction to complete. Finally, we provide a standard operating procedure for obtaining results with high precision during Boehm titration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials)
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9 pages, 2532 KiB  
Article
Mechanochemical Functionalization of Carbon Black at Room Temperature
by Desirée Leistenschneider, Katharina Zürbes, Christina Schneidermann, Sven Grätz, Steffen Oswald, Karl Wegner, Benjamin Klemmed, Lars Giebeler, Alexander Eychmüller and Lars Borchardt
C 2018, 4(1), 14; https://doi.org/10.3390/c4010014 - 13 Feb 2018
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 8777
Abstract
Carbon nanomaterials such as carbon blacks are intrinsically hydrophobic with limited wettability in aqueous media, thus restricting their potential applications. To improve their hydrophilicity, common methods tend to utilize harmful chemicals and conditions, such as a mixture of KMnO4 and H2 [...] Read more.
Carbon nanomaterials such as carbon blacks are intrinsically hydrophobic with limited wettability in aqueous media, thus restricting their potential applications. To improve their hydrophilicity, common methods tend to utilize harmful chemicals and conditions, such as a mixture of KMnO4 and H2SO4 or a complex and expensive synthesis setup. In our work, we report a simple method to improve the wettability of these materials by a mechanochemical treatment completed within 1 h at room-temperature utilizing a NH3 solution. Besides increasing the specific surface area of the carbon black from 67 m2·g−1 up to 307 m2·g−1, our process also incorporates nitrogen- and oxygen-containing functional groups into the carbon. This reduces the contact angle from 80° to 30°, confirming an enhanced wettability. Our work presents an easy, fast, and straightforward pathway towards the functionalization of carbon nanomaterials and can be of use in various applications where aqueous wettability is advantageous. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials)
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15 pages, 3317 KiB  
Article
Nitrogen-Doped Hollow Carbon Spheres with Embedded Co Nanoparticles as Active Non-Noble-Metal Electrocatalysts for the Oxygen Reduction Reaction
by Ruohao Xing, Yao Zhou, Ruguang Ma, Qian Liu, Jun Luo, Minghui Yang and Jiacheng Wang
C 2018, 4(1), 11; https://doi.org/10.3390/c4010011 - 9 Feb 2018
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 5897
Abstract
Transition metal (Fe, Co, Ni) complexes on carbon nanomaterials are promising candidates as electrocatalysts towards the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). In this paper, nitrogen-doped hollow carbon spheres with embedded Co nanoparticles were successfully prepared via a controllable synthesis strategy. The morphology characterization shows [...] Read more.
Transition metal (Fe, Co, Ni) complexes on carbon nanomaterials are promising candidates as electrocatalysts towards the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). In this paper, nitrogen-doped hollow carbon spheres with embedded Co nanoparticles were successfully prepared via a controllable synthesis strategy. The morphology characterization shows that the hollow carbon spheres possess an average diameter of ~150 nm with a narrow size distribution and a shell thickness of ~14.5 nm. The content of N doping ranges from 2.1 to 6.6 at.% depending on the calcination temperature from 900 to 1050 °C. Compared with commercial Pt/C, the Co-containing nitrogen-doped hollow carbon spheres prepared at 900 °C (CoNHCS-900) as an ORR electrocatalyst shows a half-wave potential shift of only ∆E1/2 = 55 mV, but a superior stability of about 90.2% maintenance after 20,000 s in the O2-saturated 0.1 M KOH at a rotating speed of 1600 rpm. This could be ascribed to the synergistic effects of N-containing moieties, Co-Nx species, and Co nanoparticles, which significantly increase the density of active sites and promote the charge transfer during the ORR process. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials)
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14 pages, 2842 KiB  
Article
Adsorption of Bovine Serum Albumin on Carbon-Based Materials
by Mykola Seredych, Lyuba Mikhalovska, Sergey Mikhalovsky and Yury Gogotsi
C 2018, 4(1), 3; https://doi.org/10.3390/c4010003 - 7 Jan 2018
Cited by 38 | Viewed by 9114
Abstract
The protein adsorption plays a very important role in biotechnology, biomolecular engineering and it is one of the main factors determining bio- and hemocompatibility of biomedical materials in medical applications, such as blood purification and wound healing. Here we report adsorption properties of [...] Read more.
The protein adsorption plays a very important role in biotechnology, biomolecular engineering and it is one of the main factors determining bio- and hemocompatibility of biomedical materials in medical applications, such as blood purification and wound healing. Here we report adsorption properties of two carbon-based materials, thermally expanded graphite (EGr) and graphene nanoplatelets (GnP), for bovine serum albumin (BSA), the most abundant blood plasma protein. The influence of the surface chemistry of expanded graphite on the mechanism of BSA adsorption was studied by using EGr modified with oxygen or nitrogen functionalities. Having low microporosity and the specific surface area in the range of 5 to 50 m2/g, the expanded graphite exhibits high protein adsorption capacity at high equilibrium concentrations, which makes this material a potential candidate for biomedical applications as a carrier for high molecular weight (HMW) drug delivery or adsorption of HMW metabolites. At low equilibrium concentrations, the effect of specific protein-surface functional groups interaction reveals the differences between the adsorption affinity of different surface modified EGr materials to BSA. The adsorption of BSA on GnP with a specific surface area of 286 m2/g and a developed micro-/mesoporous structure did not follow the same mechanism as seen with EGr materials. At low equilibrium concentration of BSA, GnP exhibits high adsorption efficiency. An important finding is that no release of nanoparticles from expanded graphite adsorbents was observed, which makes them potentially suitable for direct contact with blood and other tissues while very small nanoparticles were noticed in the case of graphene nanoplatelets. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials)
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3920 KiB  
Article
One-Pot Synthesis of Graphene-Sulfur Composites for Li-S Batteries: Influence of Sulfur Precursors
by James Guo Sheng Moo, Ahmad Omar, Tony Jaumann, Steffen Oswald, Juan Balach, Sebastian Maletti and Lars Giebeler
C 2018, 4(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/c4010002 - 27 Dec 2017
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 9183
Abstract
Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries are postulated as next-generation electrochemical energy storage devices due to their increased storage capabilities. However, challenges persist from the polysulfide-shuttle effect at the cathode. Soluble sulfur-based species in the cathode cross over to the lithium anode through the separator leading [...] Read more.
Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries are postulated as next-generation electrochemical energy storage devices due to their increased storage capabilities. However, challenges persist from the polysulfide-shuttle effect at the cathode. Soluble sulfur-based species in the cathode cross over to the lithium anode through the separator leading to fading capacity with cycling. This has spurred continuous effort by the scientific community to develop novel cathodes where sulfur species can affix better. A conductive nanostructured graphene network is a suitable candidate that can serve as a scaffold for holding sulfur nanoparticles. Here, a one-pot synthesis of chemically reduced graphene oxide networks prepared from easily accessible graphene oxide is demonstrated. The solution-based method simply allows for impregnation of the graphene oxide network with sulfur nanoparticles through a careful manipulation of pH of the chemical environment. Two routes were chosen for the precipitation of such sulfur nanoparticles: firstly, the dissolution of sulfur in sodium hydroxide into polysulfides followed by acidification and secondly, the acidification of sodium thiosulfate from alkaline media into sulfur nanoparticles. Both graphene oxide materials from the two routes were treated with sodium borohydride to achieve conductive graphene. The second route, with the sulfur nanoparticles derived from the acidification of sodium thiosulfate with chemically reduced graphene oxide, demonstrated favorable electrochemical behavior, showing promise as electrode material for Li-S batteries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials)
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Other

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22 pages, 3532 KiB  
Perspective
Crucial Factors for the Application of Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials in Energy and Environmental Applications
by Martin Oschatz and Ralf Walczak
C 2018, 4(4), 56; https://doi.org/10.3390/c4040056 - 17 Oct 2018
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 5814
Abstract
This special issue of C—Journal of Carbon Research is dedicated to “Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials”. It contains contributions reporting on the synthesis of nanoporous carbons for the adsorption of proteins, their applications in electrochemical energy storage/conversion, and on the characterization/modification of their surface [...] Read more.
This special issue of C—Journal of Carbon Research is dedicated to “Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials”. It contains contributions reporting on the synthesis of nanoporous carbons for the adsorption of proteins, their applications in electrochemical energy storage/conversion, and on the characterization/modification of their surface chemistry. Nanoporous carbon-based materials are widely researched, but at the same time, the field is still full of unutilized potential. The atomic construction of the carbon framework, pore sizes, pore geometries, presence of heteroatoms, particle size and shape, and many other “internal screws” are available; in the end, the high potential of carbon-based materials will only be fully explored if the interplay of these crucial factors is precisely controlled. This article is a summary of what we consider important for future targeted improvement of porous carbon nanomaterials for energy and environmental applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Nanoporous Carbon-Based Materials)
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