Sulfur-Doped porous carbon Adsorbent: A promising solution for effective and selective CO2 capture

The effective and selective capture of CO2 through the rational design of microstructures and the synthesis of carbon materials with enriched surface functionality is of utmost importance in mitigating CO2 emissions. In this study, we successfully prepared a novel type of S-doped porous carbon material with a high surface area and a significant volume of micropores in a straightforward manner. This was achieved by pyrolyzing carbonized coconut shells (CS) with potassium thiosulfate K2S2O3 (PT) as an activating and sulfur supply agent. By adjusting the pyrolysis temperature within the range of 650–750 °C, we obtained carbon materials with varying surface areas (887–1924 m2/g), pore volumes (0.35–0.95 cm3 g−1), and a homogeneous distribution of sulfur content (up to 12.26 wt%) within the carbon framework. The optimal S-doped porous carbon demonstrated the adsorption capacities of 3.59 mmol g−1 at 25 °C and 5.31 mmol g−1 at 0 °C under 1 bar. Additionally, the prepared sorbent exhibited favorable CO2/N2 selectivity, high isosteric heat, and stable cycling performance. These excellent CO2 capture properties can be attributed to the materials' high microporosity and well-dispersed sulfur functionality in the carbon framework. Collectively, these findings highlight the potential of these novel carbon materials with heteroatom doping as efficient adsorbents for the selective capture of CO2, presenting a viable solution in the quest for effective CO2 mitigation.