Preparation of nitrogen-containing mesoporous carbons and their application in supercapacitors

Nitrogen-containing mesoporous carbons (NMCs) were prepared from quinoline-polymerized pitch using mesoporous silica as a template. The effects of the ratio of quinoline-polymerized pitch/silica template and carbonization temperature on the capacitive performance of NMCs were extensively studied. The NMC synthesized at a pitch–silica template ratio of 1.5 and carbonized at 750 °C has a high surface area of 1000 m2 g−1 and a high nitrogen content of 5.43%. The unique pore structure and nitrogen functionalities enable the carbon to exhibit a high capacitance of up to 290 F g−1 in 1 mol L−1 H2SO4 aqueous electrolytes.