Porous Biomass Carbon Composites Derived from Canadian Goldenrod and Their Excellent Microwave Absorption

Electromagnetic wave pollution has become a growing concern in recent decades. Biomass-derived carbon materials have attracted significant attention as wave-absorbing materials due to their easy availability, low cost, and environmental friendliness. In this study, the invasive plant Solidago canadensis (Canada goldenrod) in China was used as the carbon source, and a two-step pyrolysis and hydrothermal process was applied to create a porous composite material with magnetic CoFe2O4 particles. This improved the impedance matching of the biomass carbon and introduced multiple loss mechanisms. The combination of magnetic loss, interfacial polarization, dipole polarization, and multiple reflections in the biomass carbon produced a material with excellent microwave absorption properties. At 16.76 GHz with a thickness of 2.5 mm, the material achieved a minimum reflection loss of −35.21 dB and an effective absorption bandwidth of 7.76 GHz. This study presents a promising method for developing biomass-based absorbers and offers an efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly solution for managing invasive species.