Fabrication of well-aligned carbon nanofiber array and its gaseous-phase adsorption behavior

Well-aligned and highly porous carbon nanofiber (CNF) arrays were obtained by a template synthesis method, using epoxy-based solution as carbon precursor in the present study. The diameter and length of the nanofiber were accord with pore size of 100 nm and thickness of 50 μm of the anodic aluminum oxide membrane, respectively. Scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscopy showed that the open-tipped CNFs had well-defined one-dimensional (1D) structures and high porosity. N2 adsorption experiment indicated that the mesoporous CNF array exhibited a high Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area of 780 m2/g. Compared with commercial active carbon, the CNF array has a higher monolayer adsorption capacity of n-hexane due to its unique pore structure. Adsorption kinetics showed that the CNFs can rapidly achieve an equilibrium coverage, indicating smaller diffusion resistance during adsorption. These results are beneficial for the hollow CNF array as a real-time gas sensing material in the future.