Influence of phosphoric acid treatment on hydrogen adsorption behaviors of activated carbons

Abstract

The scope of this work investigates the relationship between the amount of oxygen-functional groups and hydrogen adsorption capacity with different concentrations of phosphoric acid. The amount of oxygen-functional groups of activated carbons (ACs) is characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The effects of chemical treatments on the pore structures of ACs are investigated by <TEX>$N_2$</TEX>/77 K adsorption isotherms. The hydrogen adsorption capacity is measured by <TEX>$H_2$</TEX> isothermal adsorption at 298 K and 100 bar. In the results, the specific surface area and pore volume slightly decreased with the chemical treatments due to the pore collapsing behaviors, but the hydrogen storage capacity was increased by the oxygen-functional group characteristics of AC surfaces, resulting from enhanced electron acceptor-donor interaction at interfaces.