In this paper, Raman
and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies were
applied to analyze compositional and structural variations of the
generated activated carbon (AC), as induced by changing carbonate
source in three different types of systems, PVDF/M2CO3 (M = Li, Na, and K). According to the variations of I
D/I
G and sp2/sp3 ratios, a strong dependence of the AC structure
on the type and content of the initial carbonate was found, determined
by practical dehydrofluorination reactions associated with oxygen
incorporation in AC and side reactions, because of the property variation
induced by the difference in the cation of the carbonate sources.
This procedure clarified the process of PVDF dehydrofluorination and
the formation of activated carbon, which helps to optimize the material
performance of the percolative composite for flexible energy storage
applications.