Effect of oxygen for enhancing the gas storage performance of activated green carbon

We investigated the gas storage capacity of thermally carbonized and chemically activated Phyllostachys bambusoides (PB), which is a nature-derived green carbon with an organic porous structure. Samples were thermally treated at 900 ^◦C for 24 h, and then were chemically activated with different amounts of KOH. The pore distribution, surface area, and H₂ storage capacity were measured by N₂ and H₂ gas sorption, up to 847 mmHg (1.13 bar) at 77 K. The CO₂ storage capacity was measured up to 847 mmHg (1.13 bar) at 298 K. The maximum gas storage was shown in the sample activated with 6 times gravimetric ratio of chemical agent. It reached 1.86 wt% for H₂ and 3.44 mmol/g for CO₂. We used multilateral analysis methods (XRD, XPS, Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscope) to identify the factors influencing gas sorption. We found that the amount of oxygen groups influence the enhancement of gas storage capacity. Moreover, the results showed that PB-based porous activated carbon has the potential to be used as a multirole gas storage material.