Preparation of porous carbon particle with shell/core structure

Abstract

Porous carbon particles with a shell/core structure have been prepared successfully by controlled precipitation of the polymer from droplets of oil-in-water emulsion, followed by curing and carbonization. The droplets of the oil phase are composed of phenolic resin (PFR), a good solvent (ethyl acetate) and porogen (Poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA). The microstructure was characterized in detail by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nitrogen adsorption, and thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA). The obtained carbon particles have a capsular structure with a microporous carbon shell and a mesoporous carbon core. The BET surface area and porous volume are calculated to be 499 m2g-1 and 0.56 cm3g-1, respectively. The effects of the amount of porogen (PMMA), co-solvent (acetone) and surfactant on the resultant structure were studied in detail.