Effect of modification of mesophase pitches on performance of ultra-high surface area activated carbons with nanometer level micropore

With mesophase pitches as raw materials, ultra-high surface area activated carbons were prepared by KOH activation. The specific surface area and total pore volume of activated carbons were as high as 3 464 m~2/g and 2.14 cm~3/g, respectively. The iodine and benzene adsorption capacity of the resultant carbons were 3 094 mg/g and 1 610 mg/g respectively. It was found that the prepared activated carbons were rich in the micropores. The micropore sizes ranged from 1nm to 4nm.The prepared activated carbon had excellent adsorption properties. The effects of the modification of mesopase pitches on the performance of ultra-high surface area activated carbons with nanometer level micropore were studied. The results show that the purification treatments of mesophase pitch precursors are the key to the manufacture of ultra-high surface area activated carbons. The activated carbon prepared under the carbonization conditions(temperature:400 ℃;heating rate:1-2 ℃/min and soaking time:2-3 h) has the highest adsorption capacity. It is confirmed that the carbonaceous crystallites in the mesophase pitches play an important role in the preparation of ultra-high surface area activated carbons.