Carbon Innovations in Renewable Energy Systems and Environmental Sustainability

A special issue of C (ISSN 2311-5629). This special issue belongs to the section "Carbon Materials and Carbon Allotropes".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 21 December 2025 | Viewed by 398

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Guest Editor
National Institute of Research and Development for Optoelectronics (INOE-2000), 077125 Magurele, Romania
Interests: electrochemical sensors; electrochemistry; electrodeposition; Raman spectroscopy; sensor development; environmental assessment; food safety; diagnostics
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Special Issue, "Carbon Innovations in Renewable Energy Systems and Environmental Sustainability", focuses on the transformative role of carbon-based materials in advancing sustainable energy technologies and environmental solutions. Carbon, in its versatile allotropes—including graphene, carbon nanotubes, activated carbon, amorphous carbon, and diamond-like carbon—has emerged as a cornerstone material for next-generation energy systems and eco-friendly technologies.

This Special Issue aims to showcase the latest advancements in carbon-based materials and their applications in renewable energy generation, energy storage, carbon capture, and environmental remediation. Topics of interest include carbon-based electrodes for batteries and supercapacitors, catalytic systems for clean fuel production, adsorbents for environmental purification, and innovative solutions for greenhouse gas mitigation. We also welcome research on hybrid systems that integrate carbon materials with other sustainable technologies to address complex challenges in energy and sustainability.

Original research articles, reviews, and communications are invited, highlighting both experimental and theoretical studies that push the boundaries of carbon-based innovations. By bringing together experts across disciplines, this Special Issue seeks to inspire new collaborations and foster the development of groundbreaking technologies that contribute to a sustainable future.

Dr. Stefan-Marian Iordache
Guest Editor

Dr. Bogdan Biță
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • carbon-based materials
  • carbon innovations
  • renewable energy
  • energy storage
  • carbon-based electrode
  • carbon capture
  • greenhouse gas mitigation
  • clean fuel catalyst
  • environmental purification
  • environmental sustainability
  • environmental remediation

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

34 pages, 10992 KiB  
Article
Graphene-like Carbon Materials from King Grass Biomass via Catalytic Pyrolysis Using K3[Fe(CN)6] as a Dual Catalyst and Activator
by Alba N. Ardila Arias, Erasmo Arriola-Villaseñor, Madelyn Ortiz-Quiceno, Lucas Blandón-Naranjo and José Alfredo Hernández-Maldonado
C 2025, 11(3), 62; https://doi.org/10.3390/c11030062 - 14 Aug 2025
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Abstract
The potential of king grass biomass as a precursor for carbon-based materials was evaluated through comprehensive physicochemical characterization. The biomass showed high fixed carbon content, reactive oxygenated groups, and favorable atomic ratios, supporting its suitability for conversion into porous carbon structures. This study [...] Read more.
The potential of king grass biomass as a precursor for carbon-based materials was evaluated through comprehensive physicochemical characterization. The biomass showed high fixed carbon content, reactive oxygenated groups, and favorable atomic ratios, supporting its suitability for conversion into porous carbon structures. This study focused on the synthesis of graphene-like materials via high-temperature pyrolysis (~1000 °C), employing FeCl3 and potassium ferricyanide (K3[Fe(CN)6]) as catalytic agents. Although FeCl3 is widely studied, it showed limited capacity to promote graphitic ordering. In contrast, K3[Fe(CN)6] exhibited a synergistic effect, combining iron-based catalytic species (Fe, Fe3C) and potassium-derived activating compounds (K2CO3), which significantly enhanced graphitization and porosity. Characterization by Raman spectroscopy, XRD, and SEM confirmed that materials synthesized with K3[Fe(CN)6] presented improved crystallinity, lower defect densities (ID/IG = 0.37–1.11), and distinct 2D bands (I2D/IG = 0.32–0.80), indicating the formation of few-layer graphene domains. The most promising structure was obtained from cellulose treated with alkaline peroxide and deoxygenated prior to pyrolysis with K3[Fe(CN)6], showing properties comparable to commercial graphene. BET analysis revealed surface areas up to 714.50 m2/g. While non-catalyzed samples yielded higher mass, the catalytic approach with K3[Fe(CN)6] demonstrates a sustainable and efficient pathway for producing graphene-like carbon materials from lignocellulosic biomass. Full article
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