Journal of Porous Materials最新文献

In the petrochemical industry, a significant method of achieving high-value usage of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in light cycle oil is the moderate hydrocracking of these hydrocarbons into C₆-C₈ chemical raw materials. In order to prepare NiW-S supported catalysts, the impregnation technique was used to modify the small-crystal Y zeolites with P. The catalytic performance of the catalysts was assessed using naphthalene as the model chemical. The physicochemical characteristics of the catalysts and P-modified Y zeolites were examined in relation to the impacts of P modification. The results show that the introduction of P has a negative effect on the structural characteristics and acidity of Y zeolite, and this negative effect increases with the increase of P content. The introduction of P reduces the reduction temperature of the active metal of the catalyst and improves the reducibility of the active metal of the catalyst. Adding appropriate P species enhances the active phase characteristics of the corresponding Ni-W-S supported catalysts while weakening the metal-support interactions of the corresponding Ni-W-S supported catalysts. However, too much P species has a negative effect on the active phase characteristics of the catalysts. Naphthalene conversion and C₆-C₈ selectivity were shown to be significantly influenced by the synergistic catalysis of acid sites and metal sites of the catalysts. The catalyst based on 2% P modified Y zeolite exhibited the best selectivity of C₆-C₈ compounds. The yield of C₆-C₈ of 2% P modified Y zeolite-based catalyst increased by 22.34% when compared to the unmodified catalyst. It is anticipated to serve as a guide for the high-value use of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in light cycle oil in petrochemical industry.

A novel CuMn₂O₄/MnO₂/MWCNT composite was fabricated through a facile hydrothermal approach, aiming to overcome the conductivity and stability limitations of conventional metal oxide-based electrodes. Structural and surface analyses confirmed the successful integration of spinel CuMn₂O₄ and MnO₂ with carbon nanotubes, resulting in a porous, interconnected network ideal for charge storage. Electrochemical tests using CV, GCD, and EIS revealed that the incorporation of MWCNTs significantly enhanced electron mobility and ion diffusion, leading to superior capacitive behavior. The optimized electrode exhibited an imposing specific capacitance of 918 F g⁻¹ at 1 A g⁻¹ and maintained 92.7% of its capacity over 5000 cycles. Additionally, when assembled into an asymmetric device with activated carbon, the hybrid delivered a wide voltage window of 1.6 V and an energy density of 53.5 Wh kg⁻¹ at 759 W kg⁻¹, along with excellent long-term cycling retention of 97.5%. These findings validate the synergistic effect of combining mixed metal oxides with conductive carbon frameworks and demonstrate the composite’s strong potential for next-generation energy storage systems.

With the continuous acceleration of industrialisation, the demand for effective solutions for high-temperature oily wastewater discharge, thermal management of hot oil pipelines, and liquid separation under complex conditions is growing significantly. These applications impose stringent requirements on multifunctional materials that integrate thermal insulation, oil–water separation capability, and robust mechanical strength. In this study, we successfully fabricated superhydrophobic lignin fibre (LF)/Al₂O₃ composite aerogels using environmentally friendly lignin fibres and aluminium chloride hexahydrate (AlCl₃·6 H₂O) as raw materials. A cost-effective preparation process was adopted, combining sol–gel synthesis, vacuum impregnation with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), and gradient-temperature drying. The effects of varying alumina content on the microstructure, phase composition, thermal insulation performance, compressive strength, hydrophobicity, and oil–water separation efficiency of the composite aerogels were systematically investigated. Results demonstrated that increasing the alumina content significantly enhanced the aerogels’ performance, yielding low thermal conductivity (as low as 0.035 W·m⁻¹·K⁻¹) and high compressive strength (up to 5.5 MPa). Moreover, the optimised aerogel displayed a high static water contact angle (up to 155°) and a narrow pore size distribution, maintaining over 85% of its initial permeation flux after eight consecutive cycles of thermal recovery. Therefore, the composite aerogel effectively meets the complex demands of oil–water separation in both daily and industrial applications. Additionally, the developed material enables simultaneous thermal treatment and oil–water separation of oily industrial wastewater, achieving efficient recovery of water resources and waste heat utilisation, demonstrating promising application prospects and considerable engineering value.

Heterogeneous cobalt materials were important catalyst for the development of a more efficient cyclohexane oxidation process, however the catalytic performance of which should further be improved. Herein, hierarchical Silicalite-1 confined with cobalt as the active centers was hydrothermally synthesized, the chemical environment of Co and intracrystalline porosity were tuned, and the influences of which on cyclohexane oxidation was detailed studied. The cobalt in conventional Silicalite-1 was mainly four-coordinated. In the hierarchical catalyst prepared by silanization, intracrystalline mesopores in the 4.52–5.92 nm range were created, and the mesopore volume ranged from 0.127 to 0.193 cm³/g. More importantly, although the cobalt cations were usually in the tetra- and octahedral state, Si–O-Co bonds characterized with cobalt coordination number of 2.1–2.3 have been generated. The Si–O-Co bonds can further be recrystallized to Co₃O₄ nanoclusters under extended crystallization condition, and the coordination number of cobalt increased to 3.7. In cyclohexane oxidation, the activation energy (Ea) over cobalt decreased with the coordination number, the intracrystalline diffusion limitation was released by mesopores, and notably enhanced cyclohexane conversion (8.8%) and selectivity of cyclohexanol and cyclohexanone (KA oil, 91.2%) was achieved over the hierarchical Silicalite-1 with two-coordinated Co. Moreover, cyclohexyl hydroperoxide (CHHP) can in-situ be decomposed, and much more cyclohexanone can be produced with decreasing coordination number of cobalt, the CHHP selectivity decreased from 50% to less than 2.5%, while the ratio of cyclohexanol to cyclohexanone decreased from about 1.1 to 0.7. The catalytic stability was good, the KA oil selectivity and ratio of cyclohexanol to cyclohexanone remained almost the same after recycling seven times.

Waste management remains a major environmental challenge in the food sector, making the recovery and reuse of organic waste essential. This study presents a novel and optimised approach to converting pumpkin peel waste into high-quality carbon material using microwave-assisted pyrolysis (MAP), without the use of chemical additives or metal doping. The resulting carbon nanomaterial exhibits desirable characteristics, including crystalline to semicrystalline carbon nanoparticles (lattice spacing of 2.29 Å), microporosity of 29.1 m²/g, and a pore diameter of 3.7 nm, along with enhanced electron transfer kinetics (Rct = 563 Ω). This carbon material was employed to modify a screen-printed carbon electrode (SPCE) for the electrochemical detection of nitrite. The modified electrode shows a significant improvement in electrochemical response, with an increase in current output from 20 µA to 30 µA, resulting in higher conductivity, a broader Linear detection range, and a lower detection Limit of 10 µM. This work demonstrates a promising result for upcycling food waste into functional nanomaterials, offering both environmental benefits and practical applications in electrochemical sensing technologies.

Graphical abstract

Separating CO₂ and N₂ from CH₄ is crucial for energy production and environmental protection. This study showed the rapid synthesis of CHA zeolites with different morphologies using an in situ growth method, without the assistance of organic structure directing agents (OSDA) or fluoride media. The crystallization behavior of CHA zeolites was studied in terms of synthesis gel composition (including water content, silicon and aluminum content, alkalinity and Sr²⁺ concentration), synthesis temperature and duration. The results suggested that pure phase CHA zeolite nano-aggregates could be synthesized with broad precursor conditions at 150 °C for only 4 h. Then, K-CHA zeolite was ion-exchanged to Na-CHA and Ca-CHA and the adsorption properties of CHA zeolites with different morphologies and ions were studied. The results suggested that Na-CHA exhibited highest CH₄, CO₂ and N₂ adsorption capacity and showed higher ideal selectivity for N₂/H₂; Although Ca-CHA zeolites exhibited relative lower CO₂ and CH₄ adsorption capacity, it exhibited the highest ideal selectivity for CO₂/CH₄; Simultaneously, K-CHA zeolite exhibited high CH₄ adsorption capacity and high adsorption separation ability of CH₄/N₂. Furthermore, breakthrough experiments have confirmed the practical feasibility of separating CO₂ from CH₄.

The increasing levels of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions driven by industrial activities highlight the urgent need for the development of efficient and sustainable CO₂ capture technologies. Biomass-derived porous carbons have emerged as promising candidates for CO₂ adsorption due to their low cost, high surface area, and adjustable pore structure. In this study, hierarchically porous carbons (HPCs) were synthesized from waste acer truncatum wood through pre-carbonization and subsequent KOH activation. The synthesis conditions, including activation temperature and activating agent concentration, were optimized to precisely tailor the pore architecture. The resulting HPC exhibited excellent CO₂ adsorption capacities of 7.56 mmol·g⁻¹ at 0 °C and 4.29 mmol·g⁻¹ at 25 °C under ambient pressure. Notably, ultramicropores (< 0.7 nm) exhibited a dominant role in CO₂ capture at low pressures, while narrow micropores (< 1.0 nm) contributed significantly across a range of low-pressure conditions. The hierarchical pore structure enhanced CO₂ uptake at higher pressures. Furthermore, the material demonstrated exceptional CO₂/N₂ selectivity, reaching up to 112 at 0.15 bar and 0 °C, along with good cyclic stability, highlighting its potential in post-combustion CO₂ capture. This work provides a sustainable strategy for converting waste biomass into high-value adsorbents, offering a solution that addresses both environmental concerns and economic feasibility.

A new strategy has been developed for the preparation of ordered mesoporous carbon materials (OMCs) using weak organic acid induction assisted by 1,3,5-Trimethylbenzene (TMB). The type of acid, reaction temperature, TMB addition amount, and salt type all have different significant effects on the microstructure and morphology of carbon materials. In the absence of salt as a pore forming agent and inducing phase separation, OMCs was prepared by acetic acid induction at a reaction temperature of 100 °C and a TMB addition of 1 ml. The specific surface area and pore volume of mesoporous carbon are as high as 927 m²/g and 0.78 cm³/g, respectively, with a high mesoporous proportion of 72%. The catalyst obtained by loading MoO₂ and NiO nanoparticles on OMCs shows a higher specific surface area and a higher proportion of easily reducible octahedral molybdenum species compared to the catalyst obtained by loading metal on alumina. In the hydrodesulfurization (HDS) experiment of dibenzothiophene, the catalysts showed better HDS catalytic performance and higher hydrogenolysis activity.

The development of effective adsorbents for methanol removal is critical for purification processes and environmental purposes. In this study, ZSM-5 and mordenite zeolites were synthesized using a green hydrothermal approach without organic structure-directing agents, with the goal of optimizing synthesis parameters such as Si/Al ratio, crystallization time, and temperature. The physicochemical optimized properties of the zeolites were thoroughly investigated utilizing XRD, XRF, FTIR, TGA, BET, and SEM. The impact of synthesis factors on the crystallinity, porosity, and adsorption performance of zeolites was carefully investigated. Methanol adsorption tests demonstrated that adsorption capacity is highly influenced by textural qualities and framework composition. Mordenite adsorbed more methanol than ZSM-5, owing to increased microporosity and stronger contact with methanol molecules. ZSM-5, on the other hand, had a quicker saturation rate due to steric hindrance and diffusion limits within its medium-pore structure. Adsorption isotherm and kinetic simulations indicated a physisorption-dominated mechanism for both zeolites. The findings demonstrate the effect of synthesis optimization on zeolite performance and suggest a long-term strategy for developing high-efficiency adsorbents for methanol separation and purification.

Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) material is suitable for sensing applications due to higher electron mobility, stability, high sensitivity to water vapor and more easily desorb physisorbed water molecules. However, the non-homogeneous formation of TiO₂ nanotube arrays due to cracking structure is a common issue. Cracking during the preparation of TiO₂ nanotube arrays (TiO₂ NTAs) films can lead to the deterioration and malfunction of the nanotubes. The work presented here describes the niobium-doped TiO₂ NTAs (Nb-doped TiO₂ NTAs) films prepared by the dual-step electrochemical methods at different doping concentrations (1 to 7 at%). It was found that the film doped at 3 at% and annealed at 500 °C showed excellent conductivity with a value of 0.52 S. cm⁻¹. Results showed that the TiO₂ NTAs exhibited a humidity sensitivity of 239.85. The humidity sensing performance of the fabricated TiO₂ NTAs has been enhanced to 602.15 by doping with 3 at% of Nb. The enlargement of the area facilitated a slight increment of humidity sensitivity of Nb-doped TiO₂ NTAs films. This phenomenon was induced by reducing the average diameter of NTAs in TiO₂ film when the Nb dopant occupied the TiO₂ structure (59 to 48 nm). Nb is commonly combined with TiO₂ material as its regarded as a promising dopant for modifying crystalline structure. The Nb-doped TiO₂ NTAs shows high sensor stability since the Nb ions widen the host TiO₂ lattice thus improving the conductivity of TiO₂. The optimized Nb-doped TiO₂ NTAs films using the electrochemical cathodization method shows it is applicable for humidity sensor.