One-Pot Synthesis of Melamine Formaldehyde Resin-Derived N-Doped Porous Carbon for CO2 Capture Application

The design and synthesis of porous carbons for CO₂ adsorption have attracted tremendous interest owing to the ever-soaring concerns regarding climate change and global warming. Herein, for the first time, nitrogen-rich porous carbon was prepared with chemical activation (KOH) of commercial melamine formaldehyde resin (MF) in a single step. It has been shown that the porosity parameters of the as-prepared carbons were successfully tuned by controlling the activating temperature and adjusting the amount of KOH. Thus, as-prepared N-rich porous carbon shows a large surface area of 1658 m2/g and a high N content of 16.07 wt%. Benefiting from the unique physical and textural features, the optimal sample depicted a CO₂ uptake of up to 4.95 and 3.30 mmol/g at 0 and 25 °C under 1 bar of pressure. More importantly, as-prepared adsorbents show great CO₂ selectivity over N₂ and outstanding recyclability, which was prominently important for CO₂ capture from the flue gases in practical application. An in-depth analysis illustrated that the synergetic effect of textural properties and surface nitrogen decoration mainly determined the CO₂ capture performance. However, the textural properties of carbons play a more important role than surface functionalities in deciding CO₂ uptake. In view of cost-effective synthesis, outstanding textural activity, and the high adsorption capacity together with good selectivity, this advanced approach becomes valid and convenient in fabricating a unique highly efficient N-rich carbon adsorbent for CO2 uptake and separation from flue gases.