Aminated lignin derived sub-nanometer porous N-doped carbon via a low-corrosion grafting-activation strategy for CO2 capture and energy storage

Key Points

• The aim is to develop activated carbon with improved sub-nanometer pores and nitrogen doping for better CO2 capture and energy storage.
• Chemical grafting of urea onto lignin prior to pyrolysis.
• Synthesis of biomass-derived activated carbon with optimized pore structure.
• Comparison of performance metrics with physically mixed urea/lignin ACs.
• UR-L-700–0.5 K shows 37.7% higher sub-nanometer pore content than conventional methods.
• Achieves 4.67 mmol g−1 CO2 uptake at 298 K and 1 bar.
• Demonstrates a specific capacitance of 60.2 F g−1 and energy density of 26.12 W h kg−1.
• KOH consumption reduced by over 50% in the activation process.