N-doped porous carbon derived from macadamia nut shell for CO2 adsorption

Selective adsorption and converting CO2 upon efficient solid-based adsorbents is critical for net-zero accomplishment. Herein, we develop an advisable strategy to prepare nitrogen-enriched porous carbons using the macadamia nutshell (MNS) as a carbon precursor, KOH as the activator and melamine as the nitrogen agent, respectively. The as-prepared porous carbons exhibit an enhanced specific surface area of 1731 m2/g and high microporosity with abundant nitrogen functional groups and structural defects. The CO2 uptake of 6.61 and 4.35 mmol g−1 were achieved at 0 and 25 °C, respectively, under 1 bar. More importantly, these biomass-based nitrogen-doped carbons possess various CO2 adsorption merits such as quick adsorption kinetics, high CO2/N2 selectivity, medium heat of adsorption, outstanding uninterrupted recyclability and good dynamic CO2 capture capacity. The present study provides an advanced protocol to design nitrogen-doped porous Carbon via a facile route toward the capture of CO2, which offers excellent progress in sustainable chemistry and engineering.