Structural study of a phenolformaldehyde char Original Research Article

An extensive description of the chemical and structural properties of a phenolformaldehyde resin char has been made. The phenolformaldehyde char used is a high purity carbon with a developed porosity. An extensive characterization of its structure has been performed with techniques such as Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) and Neutron Diffraction. The study carried out shows some important differences in respect to the proposed structure for activated carbons. The results obtained reveal the existence of globular structures of different shapes and dimensions. These aggregations are composed of graphite layers with an order that extends to about 7 Å.