The porous network in carbon aerogels investigated by small angle neutron scattering

At 1050 °C, carbon aerogels based on NaOH and Na2CO3 catalysts provide denser materials than with Ca(OH)2-based one, due to a three-dimensional network of smaller particles. The density of particles decreases with the amount of catalyst. At 2600 °C the development of an intraparticle microporosity, which is quantified, leads to a slight decrease of the interparticle mesoporosity noticed at 1050 °C. This effect is induced by a stiffness of carbon layers in polyhedral pore walls as illustrated by the feature of the chords length distribution g(r) and TEM micrographs.