Porous silicon carbide derived from apple fruit with high electromagnetic absorption performance

Abstract

A porous silicon carbide (SiC) material was synthesized using a novel technique, which incorporates the natural porous structure of a fruit, in particular apple. Its characteristic morphological structure has been difficult to obtain using traditional methods. The novel porous SiC structure was characterized using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and vector network analyses. Microstructural analysis indicated that the microstructure of the porous SiC could be adjusted simply by varying the mass ratio of the Si : C precursors. When stacking faults were introduced into the porous SiC, the EM absorption was greatly enhanced. The lowest reflection loss value reduced from -30 dB to -60 dB. This enhancement was attributed to the introduction of stacking faults in the SiC which result in charge redistribution and generates significant dipole polarization within the porous SiC. This novel porous structure of SiC also facilitated the multi-reflection of EM waves within the absorber, which leads to enhanced absorption performance.