Fractal Strategy for Improving Characterization of N2 Adsorption–Desorption in Mesopores

The current studies primarily analyze the heterogeneity and complexity of mesopore structures based on low-temperature nitrogen (N2) adsorption curves and the Frenkel–Halsey–Hill (FHH) fractal model. However, these studies ignore the fact that the low-temperature N2 desorption curve can also reflect the desorption performance of the mesopore structure. In this research, novel fractal indicators for characterizing the adsorption–desorption performance of mesopores based on the fractal dimension from the N2 adsorption curves and N2 desorption curves are proposed. The novel fractal indicators I1 and I2 are applied to evaluate the adsorption–desorption performance of mesopores with pore size 2–5 nm and pore size 5–50 nm, respectively. The fractal indicator I1 shows an increasing trend with coalification, reflecting that the gas adsorption performance of 2–5 nm mesopores is enhanced with coalification. The fractal indicator I2 exhibits a trend of first increasing and then decreasing with coalification, indicating the gas desorption performance of mesopores with pore size 5–50 nm decreases first and then increases. The proposed indicators provide novel analytical parameters for further understanding the gas adsorption–desorption mechanism of porous coal-based or carbon-based materials.