Review:Processing and Applications of Polyacrylonitrile Derived Carbon Materials

Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) is a well-known polymer with features of great stability, outstanding physical and chemical resistance. Owing to its high carbon yield and stable performance, PAN has been widely used as a carbonizable precursor for preparing carbon materials with inherent N dopant through an oxidative stabilization and a following carbonization process. The structures and compositions of PAN precursors would further influence the formation of the resulting carbon materials. Hence, it is crucial to develop efficient processing methods to prepare PAN-based precursors with suitable morphologies and compositions. The obtained carbon materials with large surface area and good electric conductivity could be employed in a variety of fields such as structural materials, energy storage and conversion as well as adsorption and separation.