Enhancing CO₂ adsorption of activated carbon via nitrogen doping: Synthesis and characterization

 This study focuses on the rational design and synthesis of sucrose-derived nitrogen-doped porous carbon (ACN) materials for enhanced CO2 capture. ACN were synthesized by thermochemical activation of sucrose and characterized by their specific surface area, pore size distribution, XPS analysis, and CO2 adsorption capacities. The carbons showed excellent specific surface areas, with the best value being 2670.7 m² g-1, obtained for ACN (1:1:2). Additionally, depending on the ACN, pore sizes varied between 10 Å and 37 Å. XPS analysis confirmed the successful doping of nitrogen in the carbon, as well as the presence of oxygen in the final material. CO2 capture analysis demonstrated that ACN (1:2:1) exhibits a superior adsorption capacity with a value of 5.8 mmol g-1 at 273 K and 1200 mbar despite the smallest surface area amongst materials (1431 m² g-1). This study underscores the potential of carbon-based materials for CO2 capture application, offering insights into the design principles for optimizing adsorption performance.