Characterizing adsorption in nanopores of different configurations

• Main Author: Tan, Yang Nee.
• Other Authors: Wang Kean
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Nanotechnology
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/16671
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Adsorption is a widely used process in industries. One of the most important factors in determining adsorption capacity / selectivity is the pore size distribution of adsorbent. This factor has been increasingly drawing attention due to the research and applications of carbon nanotubes in such areas as : gas storage, sensors, and novel catalyst supports [1]. Several models were developed to determine the PSD of carbonaceous adsorbents, which are based on such theories as: Molecular Dynamic, Monte Carlo and Density Functional Theory, etc. However, complicated mathematical treatment, long computational time or specific molecular information is required. In this project, the mathematical model proposed by Nyugen and Do (1999) [2] was improved to simulate the hydrogen adsorption in single wall carbon nonotubes (SWCNT) [3]. The simulated results have shown that the derived PSD is in good agreement with the synthesis/TEM/SEM results. In order to further validate the accuracy of the model, it was used to simulate hydrogen adsorption in SWCNT and heat treated SWCNT at 77 K and 87 K[4]. The simulated results were consistent with the literature data where the effective pore size was ~2 nm and pore sizes ranging from 1 to 2 nm. These findings show that mathematical model of Nyugen and Do is a valid basis, and the improvement by this project is successful, in characterizing the PSD of microporous adsorbent using the supercritical sorption isotherms.