Bio-sourced mesoporous carbon doped with heteroatoms (N,S) synthesised using one-step hydrothermal process for water remediation

Abstract

Mesoporous carbon monoliths doped with nitrogen, sulphur or both have been prepared in one step hydrothermal carbonization from bio-based precursors. Glucose and pyrrole carboxaldehyde or glucose and thiophene carboxaldehyde aqueous solutions have been used as precursors for nitrogen and sulphur doped carbon materials, respectively. In the same hydrothermal process, a salt-templating approach was used to endow the material with mesoporosity. Additionally, the materials were also pyrolysed in N2 at 973 K. The average mesopore size of resulting xerogels is tuned by the used dopant. Both the doping and mesoporosity enhanced substantially the adsorption of large dye molecules. Accordingly, these metal-free, cost-effective and sustainable materials are excellent candidates for liquid phase environmental and energy applications where the dopant may play a role as catalytic active phase or electronic modulator.