Graphene-domain theory for high-surface-area nanoporous carbons: Beyond the BET method
Piotr Kowalczyk, Alexander V. Neimark, Sylwester Furmaniak, Artur P. Terzyk, Katsumi Kaneko
Abstract
Accurate determination of the surface area of nanoporous carbons and carbon-containing polymer composites is essential for designing advanced energy storage devices, including electrodes, supercapacitors, and batteries. Current methods, such as the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) approach, have limitations when applied to complex pore structures. This study evaluates the accuracy of these methods using molecular simulations and experimental data. Surface area estimates for 20 model nanocarbons and 59 experimental samples show that the proposed graphene-domain theory (GDT) provides more reliable results, particularly for carbonaceous nanomaterials with high surface areas. GDT reproduces geometric surface areas up to 2600 m 2 /g with an average error of 6 %, whereas the BET method with the Rouquerol criterion shows an average error of 12 % and overestimates surface areas by up to 30 % for nanocarbons exceeding 2000 m 2 /g. These results establish GDT as a promising approach for characterizing advanced carbonaceous materials and as a theoretical framework for porosity analysis across a wide range of nanostructured porous frameworks.