Carbon foams prepared by an oil-in-water emulsion method

摘要

Carbon foams are porous and sponge-like carbon mate-riate with many novel features such as high temperature tolerance, adjustable thermal and electrical conductivity, and large specific surface area with open celi structures. These materiate are attractive and promising candidates for use and application in, for instance, thermal manage-ment, microwave absorption, supercapacitors, aircraft brakes, and electrodes and so on. Carbon foams were initially produced by the pyrolysis of thermosetting poly-mer in 1960s. This kind of carbon foam has a uni-form cell size and moderate mechanical strength. Then carbon foams were produced by employing coals, polyi-mide, olive stone and pitches as alternative precursors. Typical foam forming processes utilized a blowing technique or pressure release in pitch precursors. In 2000, Oak Ridge National Laboratory developed a new, less time-consuming process for fabricating carbon foams which did not require the traditional blowing and oxidative stabilization steps. The resultant foams can attain a high degree of graphitization and accordingly have excellent thermal and electrical conductivity, which offer a charming candidate for electrodes and thermal managements.