Carbon cloth reinforced carbon aerogel films derived from resorcinol formaldehyde

Carbon cloth reinforced RF (Resorcinol Formaldehyde) aerogel films have been produced with extremely high RC ratio (molar ratio of resorcinol to catalyst) or with no catalyst at all. The gels were subcritically dried. Carbon aerogel films were obtained by pyrolysis of the RF aerogel films. The structure of the composite porous films was investigated using infrared spectrometer, optical and electron scanning microscope. The IR measurements indicated that the bottom surface reflectance of the films is higher than the top surface. The microscopical pictures revealed that the bottom surface of the films has a denser structure than the top surface, and the presence of carbon cloth in the sol-gel process strongly influences the structure of the films. The carbon cloth fibers act as catalytic sites. The particles are more likely to form around the fibers instead of within the sol. This leads to a somewhat reduced specific surface area as was shown via N-2 sorption and BET analysis. Using the 4-probe method the electrical conductivity of the carbon cloth reinforced carbon films was found to be higher than that of pure carbon aerogel films.