A research team led by Dr. Chariklia Sotiriou-Leventis, professor and chair of chemistry, developed a new material with the potential to effectively adsorb and retain carbon dioxide (CO2).

The material is a highly porous monolithic carbon aerogel prepared using pyrolysis of suitable polymeric aerogels made from a new class of polymers referred to as polybenzodiazines (PBDAZ), which are all-nitrogen analogues of polybenzoxazines, which in turn comprise a sub-class of mainstream phenolic resins. 

These aerogels have high microporous surface areas and contain significant amounts of nitrogen, which makes them particularly effective at adsorbing CO2. This research was published in Chemistry of Materials.

“This work is significant because it demonstrates the potential of PBDAZ-derived carbon aerogels for CO2 adsorption,” says Vaibhav Edlabadkar, a doctoral student in chemistry.

“The high surface area and nitrogen content of these materials with retention of the nanomorphology make them particularly effective at capturing and retaining CO2, which is a crucial step in efforts to address climate change,” said Dr. Sotiriou-Leventis.

Other authors include:

• Dr. Nicholas Leventis, former Curators’ Distinguished Professor of chemistry.
• Dr. Saidulu Gorla and Dr. Rushi U. Soni, former researchers in Sotiriou-Leventis’s research group.
• A. B. M. Shaheen ud Doulah, a chemistry doctoral student.
• Joseph Gloriod, a senior in chemistry
• Samuel Hackett, a sophomore in chemistry.