Synthesis of N-doped hierarchical carbon spheres for CO2 capture and supercapacitors

Abstract

N-doped hierarchical carbon spheres have been synthesized via a soft template and hydrothermal method using melamine as a nitrogen source. The obtained carbon spheres possess a high nitrogen content and well-developed porosity. These carbon spheres are examined as absorbents for CO₂ capture and as electrode materials for supercapacitors. Due to the high nitrogen content and hierarchical pore size distribution, the carbons show high CO₂ uptakes of 2.2–4.4 mmol g⁻¹ at 298 K and 1 bar. Furthermore, we observe that the carbon spheres exhibit excellent performance as supercapacitor electrodes with a high specific capacitance of 356 F g⁻¹ at a current density of 0.2 A g⁻¹. These carbon spheres as promising materials will exhibit excellent performance in various fields.