RESUMEN
The electric double-layer capacitor (EDLC) has attracted attention by using activated carbon (AC) as an active electrode material with a high power density and high cost-efficiency in industrial applications. The EDLC has been actively developed over the past decade to improve the power density and capacitance. Extensive studies on EDLCs have been conducted to investigate the relation of EDLC capacitance to the physical properties of AC, such as the specific surface area, pore type and size, and electrical conductivity. In this study, EDLC was fabricated with AC, and its capacitance was evaluated with the physical properties of AC. The AC was prepared using petroleum-based pitch synthesized using pyrolysis fuel oil (PFO) with polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The AC based on PFO and PET (PPAC) exhibited high specific surface area and low micropore fraction compared to the PFO-based AC without PET addition (PAC). Furthermore, the reduction of the EDLC capacitance of PPAC was smaller than that of PAC, as the scan rate was increased from 5 to 100 mV s-1. It was determined that the minor reduction of capacitance with an increase in the scan rate resulted from the development of 4 nm-sized mesopores in PPAC. In addition, a comprehensive correlation of EDLC capacitance with various physical properties of ACs, such as specific surface area, pore characteristics, and electrical conductivity, was established. Finally, the optimal properties of AC were thereupon derived to improve the EDLC capacitance.
RESUMEN
In this study, we evaluated the potential use of CuO-ZnO combination structures with activated carbon fibers (ACFs) for the adsorption (by ACFs) and electrochemical detection (by CuO-ZnO) by of SO2 gas. The gas adsorptivity was concluded to improve as a result of the synergetic effects of physical adsorption by the micropores and mesopores, the specific surface area developed by chemical activation and the chemical adsorption reaction between SO2 and the transition metals introduced in the CuO-ZnO combination structures. From comparison of the SO2 sensing properties, the CuO-ZnO combination structures with ACFs exhibited the fastest sensing capability. This result can be attributed to the larger specific surface area of the semiconductor, which extended its depletion layer by forming p-type CuO/n-type ZnO junctions. This phenomenon led to good SO2 detection through a decrease in the resistance; thus, the contributions of the sensing responses of p-type CuO and n-type ZnO represent a predominant characteristic of the sensor. These types of mechanisms were proven through various physicochemical and electrical characterization methods, especially through evaluation of the SO2 sensing capability of the CuO-ZnO combination structures with ACFs. The reversible sensing capability indicates that the p-n junction structure changed the electrical properties of the ACFs, leading to an intriguing sensing mechanism.
RESUMEN
The capacity of a photocatalyst system to degrade water pollutants was optimized using solar-light-sensitive TiO(2) and the swelling behavior of a hydrogel. TiO(2) synthesized via a sol-gel process was modified by multielement doping to change its solar-light-responsive properties. A hydrogel was used for the rapid absorption of both anionic and cationic water pollutants. TiO(2) particles were immobilized in/on hydrogel fibers by an electrospinning method for the easy recovery of TiO(2), and the ability of the hydrogel/TiO(2) composite to degrade dye molecules was studied. The TiO(2) particles were observed to have maintained their original anatase-type crystallinity in/on the electrospun hydrogel fibers. The dye degradation capacity of the hydrogel/TiO(2) composite was investigated using both anionic and cationic dyes under sunlight. Two mechanisms were suggested by which the hydrogel/TiO(2) composite can remove dye particles from the water: (1) the absorption of dyes by the hydrogel and (2) the degradation of the dye by the TiO(2) in the hydrogel. Both of these mechanisms were investigated in this study. We found that the dye was effectively absorbed by the hydrogel fibers as demonstrated by the swelling behavior of the hydrogel and the nano-size effects. The dye was then introduced to the TiO(2) particles for degradation.