First, what are the physical properties of all-carbon aerogel

     1, all-carbon aerogel is a black, do not rely on support to stand up material, can be molded into a variety of shapes, up to a few cubic centimeters of volume. It consists of a seamless network of carbon tubes with micrometer-sized diameters and walls 15 nanometers thick. Based on its relatively small curvature and relatively large wall thickness, its walls are qualitatively different from the graphene-like shell of carbon nanotubes, as well as glassy carbon.
     2, the wall of the pipe will be broken and wrinkled, which makes the all-carbon aerogels have elastic characteristics. The carbon bond in the all-carbon aerogel has the property of sp2 hybrid by the measurement of electron energy loss spectrum and electrical conductivity. When pressed, the conductivity of the all-carbon aerogel increases in comparison to its density, so that the closer it is compressed, the higher the conductivity.
     3, based on the tubular, interconnected network structure of all-carbon aerogel, all-carbon aerogel is more resistant to tension than other carbon-based artificial foaming substances (such as silicone aerogel). The all-carbon aerogel can maintain a large elastic deformation and has a very low Poisson ratio. An all-carbon aerogel three millimetres high can recover to three millimetres when pressed to a tenth of a millimetre. The ultimate tensile strength of all carbon aerogel depends on the material density.
     4, the ultimate tensile strength of the strongest silicone aerogel is 16kPa, under tension, the density provided is based on the measurement of mass, and for experiments also applicable to the determination of the external volume of artificial foamed substances of other structures.


     Second, what are the application fields of all-carbon aerogel

     1. Sewage treatment
     Carbon aerogel has abundant microporous structure and strong natural adsorption capacity. After surface treatment, carbon aerogel can become a new type of environmental protection material. Calcium alginate carbon aerogel was prepared by using calcium alginate as precursor. In the oil-water separation experiment, the oil on water and underwater oil were completely adsorbed by 15 and 18s respectively, which has great application potential in sewage treatment.
     2, phase change insulation substrate
     In the face of extreme environmental changes, temperature and heat transfer control is extremely important in the application of high-temperature protective clothing and aerospace equipment, CAs has an important application in phase change materials with excellent high-temperature thermal insulation performance. Carbon aerogel can improve the thermal stability of materials by composite with other materials and increase the load of phase change materials on the substrate.
     3. Supercapacitors
     Supercapacitors are divided into two types according to their working principle: double electric layer capacitors (EDLCs) and Faraday pseudocapacitors. The basic principle of the former is an electrostatic attraction, and the working principle of the latter is the REDOX reaction between the electrolyte and the electrode surface. Through the modification and preparation of carbon aerogel, researchers greatly improve the performance of capacitors and reduce the development cost of capacitors.
     4. Others
     CAs is an excellent electromagnetic shielding material. Some researchers have synthesized a graphene aerogel film (GAF) to demonstrate excellent electromagnetic shielding performance. Experiments show that the electromagnetic shielding performance is significantly positively correlated with the degree of expansion, and the expansion in the thickness direction in the multi-layer structure significantly enhances the shielding efficiency of the material. CAs is also expected to solve the problem of safe storage and transportation of hydrogen. Metal-doped CAs can break the stored argon molecules into hydrogen atoms, allowing more hydrogen to enter the material's pore structure without the risk of explosion, thereby increasing hydrogen storage.
     In summary, in terms of environmental protection, carbon aerogel can be used for sewage treatment, seawater desalination, heavy metal ion adsorption, organic waste gas treatment, etc., and the market capacity is huge; In terms of energy conservation and heat preservation, high-end and miniaturized methods have been initially applied in aerospace, petrochemical and other fields. In terms of energy storage, carbon aerogel is the best material for making supercapacitors. In the future, the development of mature, low-cost, renewable and biodegradable precursors is the development direction of large-scale industrial production, application and cost reduction of carbon aerogel.