International Research Fellow Awards Program: Production of a Novel Activated Carbon Fiber Tailored for Low-Pressure Methane Storage

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0076191MooreThe International Research Fellow Awards Program enables U.S. scientists and engineers to conduct three to twenty-four months of research abroad. The program's awards provide opportunities for joint research, and the use of unique or complementary facilities, expertise and experimental conditions abroad.This award will provide Dr. Brian C. Moore with support for twenty-four months to work with Professor Angel Linares-Solano at the University of Alicante in Alicante, Spain on the preparation of a novel activated carbon fiber tailored for low pressure methane storage.The objective of this research is to tailor-make activated carbon fibers (ACFs) for low-pressure storage of methane. The PIs hypothesize that the size of the pores within the ACFs will play a crucial role in determining methane capacity. When natural gas is adsorbed into a pore it has a much higher density than it does as a gas. The tendency of natural gas to adsorb in a pore is a function of pore width. ACFs with different pore sizes will be produced and their respective methane storage will be measured. The goal is to determine what pore sizes correlate with the most methane storage. Favorable results could allow natural gas to emerge as a highly competitive vehicle fuel. Natural gas is usually stored under high pressure in heavy, expensive tanks. This study could produce an ACF capable of competitively adsorbing natural gas at pressures that are considerably lower than those of compressed natural gas.Dr. Linares-Solano and his colleagues at Alicante have been conducting activated carbon studies for two decades, giving them considerable expertise in this area of research.***