The Effect of Pyrolysis Temperature and Formulation on Pore Size Distribution and Surfacearea of Carbon Aerogels

Abstract

ABSTRACTRecently we reported the chemistry-structure-property relationships of organic aerogels, which are synthesized by the polycondensation of resorcinol and formaldehyde in a slightly basic medium, followed by supercritical drying. These materials can be pyrolyzed in an inert atmosphere to form vitreous carbon aerogels. As measured by gas adsorption techniques, the BET surface area and pore size distributions of micro and meso pores of the carbon aerogels are affected both by the pyrolysis temperature and the formulation. Definite trends are observed in our preliminary measurements; for example, the surface area decreases with increasing pyrolysis temperature until a plateau is reached at about 900°C. This paper explores the effects of pyrolysis temperature and aerogel density on the BET surface area and pore size distributions.