Synthesis of decoupage-like carbon sheets and their adsorption properties

Decoupage-like carbon sheets (DLCSs) were obtained on a large scale by pyrolysis of tetrachloroethylene and ferrocene in an autoclave at 600 ℃ for 10 h. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images show that the thickness and the width of DLCSs are about 20~40 nm, 100~200 nm, respectively. The nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherm experiments reveal that the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific surface area of the product is 1 209 m2/g and the pore-size distribution is concentrated in the range of 058~12 nm. A series of comparative experimental results demonstrate that the most favorable temperature, amount of ferrocene and reaction time are 600 ℃, 0.093 g and 10 h for synthesis of DLCSs. By adjusting reaction parameters, hollow carbon spheres and carbon sheets can also be selectively prepared using one-pot reactions. A possible formation mechanism for the DLCSs was proposed based on the diffusion-limited aggregation（DLA） model. The adsorption behavior of DLCSs were evaluated by the removal of phenol and Rhodamine B (RB), which can remove about 82% of phenol and 48% of RB without any other additives. A possible reason for this phenomenon was also discussed.