Influence of temperature, carbon precursor/copolymer ratio and acid concentration on adsorption and structural properties of mesoporous carbons prepared by soft-templating

A series of mesoporous carbons has been synthesized by polymerization of phloroglucinol and formaldehyde in the presence of poly(ethylene oxide)–poly(propylene oxide)–poly(ethylene oxide) triblock copolymer (EO106PO70EO106; Pluronic F127) under acidic conditions. The aim of this work was to investigate the impact of temperature and the block copolymer/carbon precursor ratio on the adsorption and structural properties of soft-templated mesoporous carbons. This study shows that an increase in the temperature of the initial self-assembly process causes a decrease in the total pore volume and pore width. Interestingly, an increase in the copolymer/carbon precursor ratio results in a change of the structure from channel-like to cage-like. This change is especially visible for the samples prepared at higher temperatures. The copolymer/carbon precursor ratio affects also the pore volume, which decreases with increasing value of this ratio.