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Stable high-field anodization (1500–4000 A m−2) for the fabrication of highly ordered porous anodic alumina films has been realized in a H3PO4–H2O–C2H5OH system. By maintaining the self-ordering voltage and adjusting the anodizing current density, high-quality self-ordered alumina films with a controllable inter-pore distance over a large range are achieved. The high anodizing current densities lead to high-speed film growth (4–10 µm min−1). The inter-pore distance is not solely dependent on the anodizing voltage, but is also influenced by the anodizing current density. This approach is simple and cost-effective, and is of great value for applications in diverse areas of nanotechnology.

The effect of edge-functionalization on the competitive adsorption of a binary CO2-CH4 mixture in nanoporous carbons (NPCs) has been investigated for the first time by combining density functional theory (DFT) and grand canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulation. Our results show that edge-functionalization has a more positive effect on the single-component adsorption of CO2 than CH4, therefore significantly enhancing the selectivity of CO2 over CH4, in the order of NH2-NPC > COOH-NPC > OH-NPC > H-NPC > NPC at low pressure. The enhanced adsorption originates essentially from the effects of (1) the conducive environment with a large pore size and an effective accessible surface area, (2) the high electronegativity/electropositivity, (3) the strong adsorption energy, and (4) the large electrostatic contribution, due to the inductive effect/direct interaction of the embedded edge-functionalized groups. The larger difference from these effects results in the higher competitive adsorption advantage of CO2 in the binary CO2-CH4 mixture. Temperature has a negative effect on the gas adsorption, but no obvious influence on the electrostatic contribution on selectivity. With the increase of pressure, the selectivity of CO2 over CH4 first decreases sharply and subsequently flattens out to a constant value. This work highlights the potential of edge-functionalized NPCs in competitive adsorption, capture, and separation for the binary CO2-CH4 mixture, and provides an effective and superior alternative strategy in the design and screening of adsorbent materials for carbon capture and storage.

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