A new sustainable approach based on the hydrothermal carbonization of biomass-derivatives is reported for the synthesis of nitrogen-doped carbon-based aerogels. The catalyst-free hydrothermal treatment of both carbohydrate-based derivatives, i.e. glucose, D-glucosamine and/or N-acetyl-D-glucosamine, and phenolic compounds, i.e. phloroglucinol and/or cyanuric acid, led to highly porous monolithic gels. After pyrolysis under an inert atmosphere, conductive N-doped carbon aerogels were obtained, displaying nitrogen-doping levels of 3ā5 wt% and BET surface areas of up to 450 m2 gā1. These original materials showed the first promising results as electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction and are expected to be used in a wide variety of fields, including for advanced energy conversion and storage devices.
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