The Structure of Carbon Gels Obtained by Carbonization of Organic Xerogels Based on Larch Bark Tannins and Pine Cellulose

For the first time, it was proposed to obtain carbon gels by carbonization of organic gels synthesized by sol-gel condensation of formaldehyde with larch bark tannins and pine cellulose. According to the BET method, the introduction of cellulose into the composition of an organic tannin- -formaldehyde gel changes such characteristics of the porous structure of the obtained carbon gels as specific surface area, total pore volume, micropore surface area, micro-and mesopore volume, and average pore diameter. The development of the porous structure of carbon gels obtained with the use of dissolved cellulose additives (10 and 20 wt%) occurs as a result of the formation of mesopores with an average diameter of 22.83 and 21.54 nm. The introduction of cellulose aerogel powder into the original organic gel promotes the formation of micropores in the resulting carbon gel. The most developed microporous structure has a carbon gel obtained by carbonization of an organic tannin-cellulose gel containing 20 wt% cellulose aerogel (specific surface 754 m2/g, of which 80 % (606 m2/g) relates to the surface of micropores). Using scanning electron microscopy, it was found that the surface morphology of carbon gels obtained by carbonization of organic tannin-cellulose gels may be controlled by varying both the concentration of cellulose and its state (cellulose solution or cellulose aerogel powder) during the synthesis of the initial organic gel.

Automated summary

The carbon gels were obtained by carbonizing organic gels synthesized from formaldehyde with larch bark tannins and pine cellulose. The introduction of cellulose into the gel composition affected the porous structure of the carbon gels, including specific surface area, total pore volume, micropore surface area, micropore volume, and average pore diameter. The addition of dissolved cellulose and cellulose aerogel powder promoted the development of mesopores and micropores in the resulting carbon gels, respectively. The surface morphology of the carbon gels could be controlled by varying the cellulose concentration and state during gel synthesis.