Oxygen- and nitrogen-co-doped activated carbon from waste particleboard for potential application in high-performance capacitance

Abstract

Oxygen- and nitrogen-co-doped activated carbons were obtained from phosphoric acid treated nitrogen-doped activated carbons which were prepared from waste particleboard bonded with urea-formaldehyde resin adhesives. The activated carbon samples obtained were tested as supercapacitors in two-electrode cell and extensive wetting 7M KOH electrolytes. Their structural properties and surface chemistry, before the electrical testing, were investigated using elemental analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectra, and adsorption of nitrogen. Activated carbon treated by 4M phosphoric acid of the highest capacitance (235F/g) was measured in spite of a relatively lower surface (1360m2/g) than that of the activated carbon treated by 2M phosphoric acid (1433m2/g). The surface chemistry, and especially oxygen- and nitrogen-containing functional groups, was found of paramount importance for the capacitive behavior and for the effective pore space utilization by the electrolyte ions.