Work

Hierarchical carbon/Fe3O4 composites derived from wood with efficient multiband microwave absorption

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Hierarchical carbon/Fe 3 O 4 composites were successfully fabricated using wood as a sustainable carbon precursor via in situ magnetic nanoparticle loading and subsequent carbonization. Benefiting from the intrinsic porous cellular architecture of wood and the homogeneous anchoring of Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles, the resulting composites exhibit a synergistic combination of conductive loss, magnetic loss, and interfacial polarization. Systematic electromagnetic characterization reveals that the optimized composite delivers a minimum reflection loss of −59.21 dB at a thin matching thickness, along with a broad effective absorption bandwidth covering multiple frequency regions. The enhanced microwave absorption performance is primarily attributed to the improved impedance matching induced by hierarchical porosity, multiscale interfaces, and the balanced dielectric-magnetic loss mechanisms. This work demonstrates a feasible strategy for converting renewable biomass into high-performance, lightweight, and broadband microwave absorbers, highlighting significant potential for electromagnetic interference shielding and stealth applications.

Source: Industrial Crops and Products

DOI: 10.1016/j.indcrop.2026.123177

Authors: Lican Chen, Minzhen Bao, Yu Wang, Weigang Zhang, Yanjun Li, Tiancheng Yuan

Institutions: Beijing Forestry University, China National Bamboo Research Center, Zhejiang A & F University, Nanjing Forestry University

Language: English

Topic: Electromagnetic wave absorption materials

Subfield: Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials

Field: Materials Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Responsible consumption and production

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,720