Magneto-inductive open-cell cellular carbon composites with activated carbon as guest phase: Guefoams for energy-efficient VOCs management

Guefoams (guest-containing foams) are a new-class of open-cell cellular materials that extend the properties of conventional foams by incorporating guest phases that convert them into multifunctional materials. This manuscript describes the development of pitch-derived composite guefoams that contain two types of inclusions: iron nanoparticles embedded in the cellular skeleton and activated carbon particles as guest phases. The activated carbon particles significantly increase the specific surface area and gas adsorption capacity. When these materials are exposed to low-intensity magnetic fields, the iron nanoparticles confer a high magneto-inductive capacity that enables ultrafast heating and rapid desorption of adsorbed species. The ability of these materials to act as preconcentrators for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is demonstrated in this work using toluene as a proof of concept. The Guefoams developed here have greater preconcentration capabilities than current state-of-the-art systems while also being significantly more energy efficient due to the magnetic induction controlled desorption process. This unparalleled blend of properties makes these guefoams a valuable tool for energy-efficient VOCs management. This work was supported by the Spanish Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI), the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, and the European Union (FEDER and NextGenerationEU funds) [grants MAT2016-77742-C2-2-P and PDC2021-121617-C21]. The author would also like to acknowledge the financial support received from the Conselleria d'Innovació, Universitats, Ciència, i Societat Digital of the Generalitat Valenciana through grant GVA-COVID19/2021/097.