Title: Effects of two-step heat treatment on the structure of cotton-derived activated carbon fibres

Authors: Tsuyoshi Yoda; Keita Shibuya; Kazuma Miura; Hideki Myoubudani

Addresses: Chuetsu Technical Assistance Center, The Industrial Research Institute of Niigata Prefecture, 4-1-14 Shinsan Nagaoka City, Niigata 940-2127, Japan; Aomori Prefectural Industrial Technology Research Center, Hirosaki Industrial Research Institute, 1-1-8 Ougi-machi Hirosaki City, Aomori 036-8104, Japan ' Material Applied Technical Assistance Center, The Industrial Research Institute of Niigata Prefecture, 2-7-13 School-town, Mitsuke, Niigata 954-0052, Japan ' Chuetsu Technical Assistance Center, The Industrial Research Institute of Niigata Prefecture, 4-1-14 Shinsan Nagaoka City, Niigata 940-2127, Japan ' Material Applied Technical Assistance Center, The Industrial Research Institute of Niigata Prefecture, 2-7-13 School-town, Mitsuke, Niigata 954-0052, Japan

Abstract: Activated carbon fibre (ACF), a novel material, has attracted considerable research attention. The pore structures found on the surfaces of ACFs are strongly related to their functionality. Herein, ACF was prepared via a two-step thermal treatment of cotton. The diameters and width distributions of thus-prepared ACFs were characterised using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). SEM analysis also revealed that the pore structures on the surfaces of the cotton-derived ACFs were activated by carbon dioxide. Successful adsorption functionality of these ACFs was characterised using a methylene blue (MB) solution. The effects of the two-step thermal treatment and potential applications of this methodology are also discussed. The proposed method can be used on other fibre products or industrial waste materials generated during the manufacture of cloth and fibres, and the generated ACFs can be used for energy-storage applications.

Keywords: activated carbon fibre; ACF; scanning electron microscope; thermal treatment; activation; pore structure.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMSI.2020.107299

International Journal of Materials and Structural Integrity, 2020 Vol.14 No.1, pp.33 - 43

Accepted: 26 Apr 2019
Published online: 12 May 2020 *