Journal of The Energy Institute最新文献

{"title":"Chemical reaction kinetics simulation study on heterogeneous reactions of nitrogen oxides generation characteristics during coal-biomass co-firing in fluidized bed boiler","authors":"Shi'en Liu,&nbsp;Pengbo Zhao,&nbsp;Liangxu Dai,&nbsp;Ke Liu,&nbsp;Jiamiao Liu,&nbsp;Yingchao Nie,&nbsp;Chang'an Wang,&nbsp;Defu Che","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102395","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102395","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Coal-biomass co-firing in fluidized bed boilers is a critical technology for the clean energy transition, but predicting and controlling its nitrogen oxide emissions remains challenging. Existing simulation studies often directly simplified coal into light gases, overlooking the differences between gas-solid heterogeneous reactions and homogeneous reactions. To address this limitation, a new heterogeneous reaction model for coal-biomass co-combustion in fluidized bed boiler was proposed. The model integrates char-related heterogeneous reactions, and reveals the multiple roles of char as both a primary combustion component and a significant NO_<em>x</em> reductant. The sensitivity analysis combined with rate-of-production (ROP) kinetics modeling was conducted to investigate the influences of multiple factors on the microscopic mechanisms for nitrogen oxides formation. The findings reveal that biomass co-firing reduces nitrogen oxide emissions. This is mainly attributed to the reductive atmosphere created by volatile substances in biomass fuel, which, alongside the direct reduction by char, inhibits NO formation. Increasing the primary air ratio rises NO_<em>x</em> emissions, while N₂O emissions exhibit a downward trend, reflecting the shifting balance between homogeneous oxidation and heterogeneous reduction pathways on char surfaces. The implementation of fuel-staging strategies contributes to reducing nitrogen oxide emissions. The sensitivity and ROP analyses indicate that the reductive free radicals have an impact on nitrogen oxides formation. The HNO radical could be a crucial intermediate for the net production of NO, while the N₂O mainly originates from both the homogeneous reduction of NO_<em>x</em> by NCO, and relevant heterogeneous routes. As more wheat straw is introduced into the dilute phase zone, the increased hydrocarbon content leads to the influence of CH_<em>i</em> and its oxygen-containing derivatives on nitrogen oxides generation. These findings, obtained under typical fluidized bed conditions (∼850 °C and air atmosphere), offer a theoretical foundation for optimizing NO_<em>x</em> control strategies in practical fluidized bed boilers utilizing coal-biomass co-firing, thereby contributing to the efficient and clean combustion processes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102395"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145614630","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sustainable conversion of polypropylene into high-value carbon nanotubes using chelating agent-modified Fe/Al2O3 catalysts","authors":"Jingyuan Wu ,&nbsp;Haoyu Xiao ,&nbsp;Ning Cai ,&nbsp;Haiping Yang ,&nbsp;Hanping Chen ,&nbsp;Yang Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102320","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102320","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Waste plastics pose significant environmental challenges and require effective management strategies. Catalytic pyrolysis offers a promising route for converting waste plastics into high-value carbon nanotubes (CNTs), thereby enabling cleaner and circular carbon material production. In this study, a series of Fe/Al₂O₃ catalysts modified by chelating agents were developed using ethylenediamine (EDA), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and hydroxyethyl ethylenediaminetriacetic acid (HEDTA). An acid-washing process was also employed during the preparation of the Fe/Al₂O₃ catalysts. The addition of chelating agents effectively enhanced the dispersion of catalyst particles, improving the yield and characteristics of CNTs from pyrolysis of polypropylene (PP) plastics. Among them, EDA and HEDTA suppressed particle agglomeration and reduced the average CNT outer diameters to 15.9 nm and 15.2 nm, respectively. In contrast, EDTA led to the highest CNT yield of 280 mg/g_PP, but resulted in a larger average diameter of 19.1 nm due to the weakened metal-support interaction (MSI) associated with its strong chelating effect. H₂-TPR and ICP-OES analyses further confirmed that the incorporation of chelating agents effectively weakened the MSI, suppressed the formation of FeAl₂O₄ and improved Fe dispersion. It was also revealed that Fe₃C may constitute the catalytically inactive phase, as indicated by the inverse correlation between the Fe₃C particle size and the average CNT diameter. After acid washing, the CNT yield of Fe(A) increased to 315 mg/g_PP. While Fe(A)∗, EDTA∗ and HEDTA∗ increased the average CNT diameter, EDA∗ exerted negligible influence. Following purification, the carbon material derived from EDTA exhibited a high electrical conductivity of 17080 S/m at 30 MPa, significantly surpassing that of commercial CNTs (8177 S/m). Furthermore, Raman spectra showed that the I_D/I_G and I_G'/I_G ratios of Fe(A) were 0.73 and 0.58, respectively, while those of FeEDA∗, FeEDTA∗ and HEDTA∗ were 0.49/0.82, 0.49/0.88 and 0.46/0.85, respectively. This process demonstrates a cleaner and efficient route for converting plastic waste into functional carbon nanomaterials. The findings provide a potential sustainable solution for plastic valorization and circular carbon material production.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102320"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145364987","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Realizing balanced performances of integrated CO2 capture and utilization over natural limestone with/without Ni modification in a lab-scale micro-fluidized bed reactor","authors":"Lei Liu,&nbsp;Liao Deng,&nbsp;Hanzi Liu,&nbsp;Zhiqiang Sun","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102349","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102349","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The integrated carbon capture and utilization with reverse water gas shift (ICCU-RWGS) is a promising novel approach to reduce CO₂ emissions. Screening an efficient and economic Ca-based dual-functional material (DFM) is quite significant for the ICCU-RWGS application. However, efforts have been widely tried to improve the CO₂ capture and CO production performances based on expensively manufactured Ca-based DFM in the powder state, which is hard to apply to a real fluidized bed reactor. Herein, a natural limestone was selected as the raw material to prepare Ni_x/limestone as the Ca-based DFMs, and a lab-scale fluidized bed reactor was applied to study the cyclic CO₂ capture and utilization steps at the fluidizing state over a wide range of temperatures, particle sizes, and H₂ concentrations. The results indicate that Ni₅/limestone exhibits superior performance, compared to pure limestone, Ni₂/limestone and Ni₈/limestone, achieving a CO₂ capture capacity of 12.9 mmol/g, a CO₂ conversion of 83.4 % and a CO yield of 10.8 mmol/g at 650 °C. The CO selectivity approaches 100 % during the whole test. Moreover, the experiments reveal that the performance of Ni₅/limestone is more sensitive to temperature and particle size than H₂ concentration. The SEM and XPS results show that the reduction in the Ni²⁺/Ni³⁺ ratio is mainly responsible for the degradation in cyclic performance of the Ni₅/limestone material. Compared to the manufactured Ca-based DFMs from the published work, the Ni₅/limestone shows balanced physical and chemical properties. The findings provide valuable insights for designing an efficient and cost-effective DFM for the ICCU-RWGS process.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102349"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145364991","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pyrolysis-driven chemical recycling: Tailoring kinetics to polymer waste complexity","authors":"Cindy Natalia Arenas ,&nbsp;Mariluz Betancur ,&nbsp;Juan Daniel Martínez ,&nbsp;María Victoria Navarro","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102348","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102348","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Precise kinetic models are required for the chemical recycling of polymer waste by pyrolysis to predict conversion and reaction rates, which are fundamental for developing a reactor model. This study evaluates the pyrolysis kinetics of three polymer wastes of different complexity: end-of-life tires, polyethylene terephthalate, and polystyrene. For this purpose, thermogravimetric data obtained at three different heating rates were analyzed using two complementary approaches: 1) a single-step method combining isoconversional and master plot techniques, and 2) a multi-step distributed activation energy model. This work is crucial because it provides the first systematic comparison of fitted conversion and reaction rate curves against experimental data, filling a gap in the existing literature. The results show that the complexity of the feedstock influences the accuracy of the model: The distributed activation energy model outperforms single-step methods for end-of-life tires and correctly captures their multi-component degradation (complex matrix containing natural and synthetic rubber). On the other hand, Friedman/master plots work better for simpler polymers such as polyethylene terephthalate and polystyrene, which contain ethylene glycol and terephtalic acid, and styrene, respectively. The derived kinetic parameters enable precise description of temperature-dependent reaction progress, and are the first step in reactor design. This work establishes a waste-specific framework for selecting kinetic models, thereby advancing scalable pyrolysis processes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102348"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145365115","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A review of hybrid computational fluid dynamics and machine learning approaches for the combustion of alternative fuels","authors":"Evans K. Quaye ,&nbsp;Pan Jianfeng ,&nbsp;Fan Baowei ,&nbsp;Lu Qingbo ,&nbsp;Zhang Yi ,&nbsp;Jiang Chao ,&nbsp;Li Zhongjia ,&nbsp;Yang Wenming","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102384","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102384","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The transition to clean fuels is essential for meeting global decarbonization objectives. However, the complex combustion modeling and optimization of these fuels pose significant challenges. Traditional modeling approaches like Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), although accurate and foundational, struggle with computational costs, limited scalability, and fidelity trade-offs in combustion systems. This review seeks to evaluate the challenges and transformative potential of combining CFD with Machine Learning (ML) to the combustion of three key candidate fuels in the transition towards a sustainable energy future namely; hydrogen, ammonia, and biofuels. ML techniques including Artificial Neural Network (ANN), Gaussian Processes and Reinforcement Learning, are shown to supplement CFD workflows by accelerating the combustion process and the characteristics of these fuels. Case studies show that CFD-ML hybrid can speed up computations by up to about two orders of magnitude without significantly compromising the accuracy. This enables the real-time optimization of the combustion, mitigate NOx formation, reduce unburned ammonia-slips and addresses the soot formation of biofuels. Despite these advances, unaddressed challenges like data scarcity for high-pressure regimes, interpretability of the so-called black-box ML models, and scalability gaps in industrial applications still exist. The review identifies physics-informed ML models, digital twins, and established critical algorithm selection criteria essential for successfully integrating ML into CFD combustion studies. This interdisciplinary convergence has proven to be an efficient tool in combustion studies while accelerating the design of carbon-neutral energy systems. The study therefore harnesses CFD-ML synergy for applications in modeling sustainable combustion technologies for power generation, aviation, and heavy industry.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102384"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145681415","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Optimization of heavy metal removal and salt recovery from MSWI fly ash through pre-washing combined with hydrothermal treatment","authors":"Md Rajib Hossain ,&nbsp;Rendong Zheng ,&nbsp;Yuyang Long ,&nbsp;Yuxuan Ying ,&nbsp;Mi Yan","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102419","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102419","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The environmental risks posed by heavy metals in municipal solid waste incineration fly ash are a critical concern, requiring effective safety training and disposal strategies. This study examined the combination of pre-washing with hydrothermal treatment to remove heavy metals and recover salts from fly ash. The samples were analyzed using XRF, XRD, SEM, BET, and ICP-MS to assess the effect of combined treatment on heavy-metal stabilization. Hydrothermal conditions were varied in terms of temperature, liquid-to-solid (L/S) ratio, duration, and additives (H₂O₂ and HCl) to enhance metal immobilization and reduce the leachability of As, Pb, Cr, Cd, Ni, and Zn. Pre-washing removed up to 85 % of salts, reducing dissolved solids. After hydrothermal treatment, inorganic reagents Na₂S and Na₃PO₄ were used to separate heavy metals from the highly toxic, high-salt wastewater phase. The experimental results demonstrate that pre-washing combined with hydrothermal treatment (210 °C, 15min, 5:1 L/S ratio, and 2 mol/L HCl) is suitable for leaching heavy metals from fly ash by forming zeolites that stabilize them. Na₂S and HCl treatments optimized salt recovery, indicated by increased sodium salt extraction. Multivariate analyses, including correlation heatmaps, PCA, and cluster analysis, were performed after hydrothermal treatment to explore relationships among heavy metals. Overall, this combined process offers a promising approach for removing heavy metals, enhancing resource recovery, and reducing environmental risks associated with fly ash disposal.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102419"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145733334","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"NOx formation in pulverized coal co-firing with ammonia and hydrogen: effects of fuel properties and air-staging","authors":"Chunxu Ma ,&nbsp;Bang Cui ,&nbsp;Yanfei Du ,&nbsp;Zhou Yu ,&nbsp;Jianguo Du ,&nbsp;Yu Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102409","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102409","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Co-firing hydrogen or ammonia with coal offers a viable pathway for reducing carbon emissions in pulverized coal combustion, yet strategies for achieving low-NOx emissions remain insufficiently understood. This study investigates the effects of fuel properties and air-staging on NOx formation during ammonia–coal and hydrogen–coal co-firing in a 50-kW wall-temperature-controlled drop-tube furnace, supported by chemical reactor network (CRN) modeling. Results show contrasting behaviors: in ammonia–coal co-firing, NO emission increases monotonically with higher ammonia blending ratios, whereas in hydrogen–coal co-firing, NO decreases initially and become stabilizing when the hydrogen fraction exceeds 20 %. Air staging significantly suppresses NO formation in both systems, but the two carbon-free fuels display distinct sensitivities to the primary combustion zone's excess air ratio (α₁). Ammonia–coal co-firing requires precise control of α₁ to minimize emissions, while hydrogen–coal co-firing only demands maintenance of a fuel-rich primary zone (α₁ &lt; 1). Reaction pathway analysis reveals that NO formation predominantly originates from the NH_<em>i</em> pathway, with competitive reactions among HNO, NH₂, NH, and N determining whether nitrogen converts to N₂ or NO. These findings clarify the mechanisms by which air staging mitigates NO and provide critical guidance for tailoring low-NOx strategies in industrial ammonia–coal and hydrogen–coal co-firing applications.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102409"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145733430","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Morphology engineering of support oxides boosted the catalytic performance over Co/Y2O3 catalysts in reverse water-gas shift reaction","authors":"Xiao-Yu Zhang ,&nbsp;Wen-Lin Li ,&nbsp;Zhi-Hao Ma ,&nbsp;Sheng Li ,&nbsp;Wei-Wei Yan ,&nbsp;Li Li ,&nbsp;Xing-Shun Cong ,&nbsp;Xian-Yong Wei ,&nbsp;Zhi-Xin Li","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102368","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102368","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The reverse water-gas shift (RWGS) reaction represents a critical pathway for CO₂ valorization into syngas for Fischer-Tropsch synthesis and renewable energy storage. Although Co-based catalysts offer an economical and efficient solution, their application is affected by CO₂ methanation reaction and carbon deposition, resulting in limitations that are difficult to balance between activity, selectivity and stability. This work provides an effective approach to enhance the RWGS reaction performance over Co-based supported catalysts through Y₂O₃ morphology engineering (nanoplates/NP, nanorods/NR, nanospheres/NS). Remarkably, Co/Y₂O₃-NR catalyst demonstrates exceptional, CO₂ conversion (57.1 %), CO selectivity (99.3 %) and stability compared to Co/Y₂O₃-NP and Co/Y₂O₃-NS catalysts at 600 °C. Systematic characterization reveals that Y₂O₃-NR exhibits optimal Co dispersion, moderate metal-support interaction and preferential CO₂ adsorption, resulting in its outstanding catalytic activity. Crucially, spatially segregated carbon deposition preserves active sites across Co/Y₂O₃ catalysts, enhancing the catalytic stability. These findings establish Y₂O₃ morphology engineering as an exemplary support material and provide mechanistic insights for designing high-performance Co-based supported catalysts in RWGS reaction <em>via</em> morphological engineering.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102368"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145517257","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Boosting hydrogen production in biomass pyrolysis via Pr - doped Ni/ZrO2 catalysts","authors":"Xiawen Yu,&nbsp;Zhenxing Bu,&nbsp;Quantian Li,&nbsp;Jianfen Li","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102370","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102370","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study aims to develop an efficient hydrogen production route by enhancing nickel-based catalysts for biomass pyrolysis toward syngas. To this end, a series of Pr-modified ZrO₂-supported nickel catalysts were synthesized and compared with unmodified Ni/ZrO₂ counterparts. The catalysts were systematically characterized to elucidate morphological and compositional changes induced by Pr doping. Evaluation of catalytic performance revealed a 29 % increase in hydrogen yield for the Pr-doped catalysts relative to the undoped system. Under optimized conditions—including a pyrolysis temperature of 900 °C, pyrolysis time of 30 min, calcination temperature of 500 °C, Ni loading of 5 wt%, and a Zr/Pr molar ratio of 8:2—the Pr-doped Ni/ZrO₂ catalyst achieved a maximum H₂ yield of 0.7359 L/g and exhibited remarkable catalytic stability. The enhancement in performance is mainly ascribed to the role of Pr doping, which not only stabilizes the ZrO₂ support but also modulates the acid–base properties of the catalyst, thereby improving Ni dispersion and reinforcing the antioxidant capacity of the system. These combined effects contribute to highly efficient hydrogen production during biomass pyrolysis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102370"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145517261","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Hydrothermal pretreatment for controlling bamboo biomass composition and regulating pore structure of bamboo-based activated carbon for CO2 adsorption","authors":"Bingjie Wang ,&nbsp;Qiang Xie,&nbsp;Yutong Sha,&nbsp;Sirui Qian,&nbsp;Jinchang Liu,&nbsp;Dingcheng Liang","doi":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102341","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.joei.2025.102341","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Activated carbon with a narrow distribution of ultra micropores is regarded as a promising CO₂ adsorbent. Although chemical activation increases ultra microporosity, it entails high cost, equipment corrosion, and limited scalability. In this study bamboo was used as the precursor, and hydrothermal pretreatment was introduced prior to carbonization and steam activation to regulate the 0.5–0.7 nm pore-size distribution by adjusting the cellulose/lignin ratio. Biomass composition analysis together with N₂/CO₂ adsorption measurements was employed to establish the composition-structure-performance linkage. Results show that the sample derived from bamboo hydrothermally pretreated at 180 °C for 6 h, is featured with abundant micropores, with a distribution centered at 0.5–0.7 nm and a specific surface area of 1025 m²/g, achieving a CO₂ adsorption capacity of 3.91 mmol/g at 273 K and 1 bar. Overall, this work demonstrates a scalable, reagent-free physical-activation pathway that regulates the narrow distribution of ultra micropores, delivering CO₂ adsorbents suitable for energy and industrial systems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17287,"journal":{"name":"Journal of The Energy Institute","volume":"124 ","pages":"Article 102341"},"PeriodicalIF":6.2,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145327358","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}