Activated carbon cryogels and related methods

• US 8,709,971 B2
• Filed: 03/13/2012
• Issued: 04/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BASF SE
• Original Assignee: EnerG2, Inc. (BASF SE), University of Washington
• Inventors: Feaver, Aaron, Cao, Guozhong
• Primary Examiner(s): MCCRACKEN, DANIEL
• Application Number:
  US13/419,273
• Publication Number:
  US 20130020349A1
• Time in Patent Office: 777 Days
• Field of Search: 502416-439
• US Class Current: 502/416
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 20/20 comprising free carbon; comprising carbon obtained by carbonising processes
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 20/28011 Other properties, e.g. density, crush strength
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 20/28047 Gels
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 20/28057 Surface area, e.g. B.E.T specific surface area
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 20/28076 being more than 1.0 ml/g
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 30/00 Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites
• CPC Class Codes: C01B 3/0021 Carbon, e.g. active carbon, carbon nanotubes, fullerenes; Treatment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: C01B 32/00 Carbon; Compounds thereof C01B21/00, C01B23/00 take precedence; percarbonates C01B15/10; carbon black C09C1/48
• CPC Class Codes: F17C 11/005 for hydrogen
• CPC Class Codes: F17C 11/007 for hydrocarbon gases, such as methane or natural gas, propane, butane or mixtures thereof [LPG]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/32 Hydrogen storage

Abstract

Carbon cryogels, methods for making the carbon cryogels, methods for storing a gas using the carbon cryogels, and devices for storing and delivering a gas using the carbon cryogels.

Claims

1. A composition comprising a carbon material and a gas, wherein the carbon material comprises a nitrogen sorption maximum at a pore size less than 5 nm when the carbon material is analyzed by nitrogen sorption porosimetry at 77°

K, and the composition comprises from 0.0010 to 0.015 moles of the gas per gram of the carbon material.

2. The composition of claim 1, wherein the carbon material comprises a nitrogen sorption maximum at a pore size ranging from 0.5 nm to 2.0 nm when the carbon material is analyzed by nitrogen sorption porosimetry at 77°

K.

3. The composition of claim 1, wherein the carbon material comprises a peak pore volume greater than 0.1 cm³/g for pores comprising a diameter less than 2 nm.

4. The composition of claim 1, wherein the carbon material comprises a total pore volume ranging from 1.0 cm³/g to 1.5 cm³/g.

5. The composition of claim 1, wherein the carbon material comprises a total pore volume ranging from 1.2 cm³/g to 1.4 cm³/g.

6. The composition of claim 1, wherein the carbon material comprises a surface area ranging from 1,500 m²/g to 3,000 m²/g.

7. The composition of claim 1, wherein the composition comprises from 0.005 to 0.010 moles of the gas per gram of the carbon material.

8. The composition of claim 1, wherein the gas is natural gas, methane, hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon monoxide, fluorine, nitric oxide, nitrogen trifluoride, silane, ethylene, boron trifluoride, phosphine, arsine, disilane or carbon tetrafluoride.

9. The composition of claim 1, wherein the gas is natural gas or methane.

10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the gas is methane and the composition comprises from 1.63% to 21.05% by mass of methane relative to mass of the carbon material.

11. The composition of claim 10, wherein the composition comprises from 15% to 20% by mass of methane relative to mass of the carbon material.

12. The composition of claim 1, wherein the carbon material is an activated carbon cryogel.

13. The composition of claim 12, wherein the activated carbon cryogel comprises an activation percentage ranging from 25% to 75%.

14. The composition of claim 1, wherein the composition is in a closed vessel.

15. The composition of claim 1, wherein the composition is at room temperature.

16. The composition of claim 1, wherein the carbon material comprises a powder density ranging from 0.20 g/cm³ to 1.0 g/cm³.

35. A vessel comprising the composition of claim 1.

36. A method for gas storage and distribution, the method comprising providing the vessel of claim 35 and releasing the gas through a conduit to a desired location.

17. A composition comprising a carbon material and a gas, wherein the composition comprises from 6.7×

10<sup>−

4</sup> to 1.3×

10<sup>−

2</sup> moles of gas per cm³ of pore volume of the carbon material.

18. The composition of claim 17, wherein the carbon material comprises a nitrogen sorption maximum at a pore size less than 5 nm when the carbon material is analyzed by nitrogen sorption porosimetry at 77°

K.

19. The composition of claim 17, wherein the carbon material comprises a peak pore volume greater than 0.1 cm³/g for pores comprising a diameter less than 2 nm.

20. The composition of claim 17, wherein the carbon material comprises a surface area ranging from 1,500 m²/g to 3,000 m²/g.

21. The composition of claim 17, wherein the composition comprises from 3.3×

10<sup>−

3</sup> to 1.0×

10<sup>−

2</sup> moles of gas per cm³ of pore volume of the carbon material.

22. The composition of claim 17, wherein the gas is natural gas, methane, hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon monoxide, fluorine, nitric oxide, nitrogen trifluoride, silane, ethylene, boron trifluoride, phosphine, arsine, disilane or carbon tetrafluoride.

23. The composition of claim 17, wherein the gas is natural gas or methane.

24. The composition of claim 17, wherein the gas is methane and the composition comprises from 1.63% to 21.05% by mass of methane relative to mass of the carbon material.

25. The composition of claim 17, wherein the carbon material comprises a powder density ranging from 0.20 g/cm³ to 1.0 g/cm³.

26. A composition comprising a carbon material and a gas, wherein the carbon material comprises from 3.3×

10<sup>−

7</sup> to 2.6×

10<sup>−

5</sup> moles of the gas per m² of the carbon material.

27. The composition of claim 26, wherein the carbon material comprises a nitrogen sorption maximum at a pore size less than 5 nm when the carbon material is analyzed by nitrogen sorption porosimetry at 77°

K.

28. The composition of claim 26, wherein the carbon material comprises a peak pore volume greater than 0.1 cm³/g for pores comprising a diameter less than 2 nm.

29. The composition of claim 26, wherein the carbon material comprises a total pore volume ranging from 1.0 cm³/g to 1.5 cm³/g.

30. The composition of claim 26, wherein the composition comprises from 1.7×

10<sup>−

6</sup> to 2.0×

10<sup>−

5</sup> moles of the gas per m² of the carbon material.

31. The composition of claim 26, wherein the gas is natural gas, methane, hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon monoxide, fluorine, nitric oxide, nitrogen trifluoride, silane, ethylene, boron trifluoride, phosphine, arsine, disilane or carbon tetrafluoride.

32. The composition of claim 31, wherein the gas is natural gas or methane.

33. The composition of claim 26, wherein the gas is methane and the composition comprises from 1.63% to 21.05% by mass of methane relative to mass of the carbon material.

34. The composition of claim 26, wherein the carbon material comprises a powder density ranging from 0.20 g/cm³ to 1.0 g/cm³.