Preparation of highly mesoporous wood-derived activated carbon fiber and the mechanism of its porosity development

Abstract

Abstract Wood-derived activated carbon fibers (WACF) with large mesopore volumes have been developed, which were prepared only by H3PO4 as the activator (WACF-P). By carefully controlling the H3PO4 concentration at the 10% level and activation temperature at 700°C, the contribution of mesopore to the total pore volume of WACF reached 87%, which is much higher than those obtained in previous studies on ACF. The porosity development mechanism of WACF-P was interpreted based on the data of pore characteristics, crystallite structure, surface elemental constituents, and surface functional groups. The activation effect of H3PO4 seems to be mainly relied on the enlargement of the existing defects in the fibers, which are developing to mesopores. Based on the large mesopore volume, the WACF-P have an excellent adsorption property for xylenol orange (XO). In general, the WACF-P are suitable for the adsorption of macromoleculses.