Molten salt synthesis of nitrogen-doped porous carbons for hydrogen sulfide adsorptive removal

Nitrogen-doped porous carbons (NPCs) with high hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) adsorption capacity have been prepared through the molten-salt approach, using d-glucose as carbon source, melamine as nitrogen source and eutectic salt (LiCl/KCl) as porogen. The NPCs possess tunable nitrogen content (3.07–24.31 wt.%) and specific surface area (451–1190 m²/g) with the changing of the weight ratio of nitrogen source to carbon source and synthesis temperature. The H₂S adsorptive performance of NPCs is highly superior to that of non-doped porous carbon. X-rays photoelectron spectroscopy analyses combined with quantum chemical calculations demonstrate that the adsorption performance of the as-prepared NPCs depends on their nitrogen content and N-bonding configurations in the carbon materials, as well as their porosity. Pyridinic nitrogen doped carbon in NPCs have stronger interaction with H₂S compared to pyrrolic and graphitic nitrogen doped carbon. Based on the advantages of the developed porosity and abundant nitrogen functional groups, the saturated sorption capacities of 0.97–1.25 mmol H₂S/g can be achieved over NPCs at 25 °C under dry and anaerobic conditions.