A facile synthesis of Fe/C composite derived from Fe-metal organic frameworks: Electromagnetic wave absorption with thin thickness.

With the increasing utilization of microwaves in the gigahertz range, the preparation of high-performance microwave absorbing materials is technologically essential. In this research, porous carbon and iron composites derived from iron metal-organic frameworks (Fe-MOFs) were easily synthesized via solvothermal reactions and in situ pyrolysis processes. The porous carbon matrix and iron create a synergistic effect of dielectric loss and magnetic loss, which optimizes the impedance matching and improves the microwave absorbing performance. When the matching thickness is only 1.5 mm, the reflection loss and the effective absorbing bandwidth reach − 37.63 dB and 4.4 GHz, respectively. Meanwhile, It's worthwhile to explore MOFs-derived carbon-based composite absorbers with high room for improvement. This research provides a new method for the preparation of high-performance microwave absorbing materials with thin thickness. • The Fe/C composite derived from Fe-MOFs was prepared successfully. • The porous structure and the synergy of dielectric and magnetic loss contribute to microwave absorption. • The RL min of FC-900 reaches − 37.63 dB when the matching thickness is only 1.5 mm, and the effective absorption bandwidth reaches 4.4 GHz. • Multiple attenuation mechanisms of the Fe/C composite are clarified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]