Water soluble phenol-formaldehyde resin was prepared from phenol and formaldehyde through a two-step alkaline catalytic reaction

and sodium hydroxide was added as catalyst.Mesoporous carbon was obtained by decomposition of the phenol-formaldehyde resin at a high temperature.Then the product was activated in 2.5 mol8226;L-1 HNO3.Physical properties of the product were characterized by infrared spectrometer (IR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and porosity measurements.The results showed that activation resulted in a lower specific surface area and broader pore size distribution.On the other hand

activated carbon treated in HNO3 increased the content of oxygen-containing functional groups

which increased the effective surface area.The activated carbon demonstrated good electrochemical performance in KOH electrolyte.The specific capacitance was approximately 250 F8226;g-1.