Sustainable Porous Carbon Derived from Lignin for High-Performance CO2 Capture.

The accelerating rise of atmospheric CO2 remains a central driver of global climate change, highlighting the urgent need for scalable and energy-efficient carbon capture technologies. Porous carbons are among the most promising solid adsorbents due to their high surface area, chemical stability, and tunable pore structures, which facilitate efficient CO2 adsorption and low regeneration energy. Lignin is a renewable aromatic by-product of the pulp and paper industry, which offers exceptional promise as a sustainable carbon source due to its abundance (50-70 Mt/year), high carbon content (>60 wt%), and rich aromatic structure. Unlike previous reviews broadly covering biomass-derived carbons, this review focuses on recent advances in lignin-derived porous carbons for CO2 capture, correlating preparation strategies with structural evolution and adsorption performance. Chemical activation, templating, and hybrid methods enable precise control of ultramicropores (2 capture using lignin-derived porous carbons.