Process for preparing carbonaceous material carrying ultrafinely dispersed metal

Abstract

A process for the preparation of a high-softening-point pitch rich in mesopores having a softening point measured by temperature gradient method of 150° C. or higher, a weight loss by heating up to 300° C. of 5 wt. % or less and mesopores of 100 mm,/g or greater, in terms of minute pore volume calculated by the Dollimore-Heal method, and a process for making carbonaceous materials carrying metal thereon are disclosed. The high-softening-point pitch rich in mesopores can easily provide carbonaceous material carrying metal thereon by using no oxidizing agent such as nitric acid, and, therefore, the high-softening-point pitch rich in mesopores is especially suitable for the production of carbonaceous materials carrying metal thereon or highly crystalline graphitized carbonaceous materials in a short heating time. The process for the production of a high-softening-point pitch rich in mesopores comprises forming micro-shaped carbonaceous materials having a size of 100 &mgr;m or less, and contacting the micro-shaped carbonaceous materials with an extracting organic solvent so as to remove 20-90 wt. % of light components from the micro-shaped carbonaceous materials. A carbonaceous material carrying metal thereon can easily be prepared by contacting the high-softening point pitch rich in mesopores with an aqueous solution of an anionic surface active agent, and then contacting the material treated with the surface active agent with an aqueous solution of metal salts.