Glass-like carbon spheres - Activation, porosity and application possibilities

Abstract

A brief review on spherical carbons, including fullerenes and related spherical particles, is first provided, followed by a review of the results on air activation, porosity and applications focused on glass-like carbon spheres derived from phenolic resin spheres. Kinetic studies of the oxidation in air provide a fundamental understanding of activation process of glass-like carbon spheres. On the basis of the results, a new activation procedure, viz. two-step activation, is proposed, which provides ca. 10% higher oxidation yield in obtaining a comparative pore structure. Some possibilities for applications of these glass-like carbon spheres are also described, such as the adsorption/desorption of CO2 gas and chlorinated methanes, the adsorption of organic molecules from their aqueous solutions, and the provision of electrodes for electric double layer capacitors and lithium ion rechargeable batteries.