ACTIVATED CHARCOAL

What is activated charcoal

Activated carbon, also called activated charcoal, is a form of carbon processed to have small,

low-volume pores that increase the surface area available for adsorption or chemical
reactions. Activated is sometimes replaced by active.

Due to its high degree of microporosity, one gram of activated carbon has a surface area in
excess of 3,000 m2 (32,000 sq ft) as determined by gas adsorption. An activation level sufficient
for useful application may be obtained solely from high surface area. Further chemical treatment
often enhances adsorption properties.

Preparation of activated carbon powder

Activated powdered carbon is produced by pyrolysis ie heating in a muffle furnace
at different temperatures ranges (200-700 0C) for at least 5 hours in an O 2
impoverished environment. The product is crushed to produce fine powder.

Chemical modification of activated powdered carbon

The powder is treated with 98% HNO 3 for 24 hours at the ratio of 0.1 g/ml under
continuous agitation (200 rpm) at 35 0C for 2 hours to increase the adsorptive
behaviors (Park et al., 1919). The reaction mixture is filtered, and the filtrate is
washed repeatedly with deionized water followed by soaking in 1% NaOH solution
for 24 hours. The soaked sample is then washed with distilled water for several
times to desorb ions. The powder is then oven dried at 120 0C for 24 hours, cooled
and stored for further use.
Purpose of chemically modifying activated powdered carbon

Most powders derived from pyrolysis have few oxygenated groups including
hydroxyl, carbonyl and carboxylate. Such powder exhibits inadequate porosity and
reduced surface area. There is therefore a need to enhance adsorption processes
through introducing of functional groups on powder (Liu et al., 2011). The
common method known for forming bio-char oxygenated functional groups is
called surface oxidation. Various functional groups like lactones, carboxyl,
peroxides and phenolic hydroxyl can be generated using surface oxidation method
(Li et al., 2014). Xu et al (2014) mentioned that the hydroxyl and carboxyl groups
significantly increase the adsorption process.. Surface oxidizing agents which are
normally used include HNO3, H2O2 and KMnO4 (Anfruns et al, 201; Wu et al,
2014; Gokce et al., 2014).

Batch adsorption experiments

These experiments must be done to optimize the adsorption parameters ie contact

time, adsorbent dosage, contact time and PH. Adsorption mechanisms of powdered
activated carbon are driven by the adsorption kinetics, which involves mass
transport and chemical reaction processes (Tan et al., 2015).

Figure 1: Process Flow Diagram

PROPERTIES OF ACTIVATED CARBON

Activated carbon is a non-hazardous carbon-bearing product with a porous structure and a very
large internal surface area. The chemical structure of activated carbon can be defined as a crude
form of graphite, with a random amorphous structure that is highly porous over a range of pore
sizes, from visible cavities and gaps to those of molecular dimensions. Particle size distribution
ie the finer the particle size of an activated carbon, the better the access to the surface area and
the faster the rate of adsorption kinetics.

APPLICATIONS OF ACTIVATED CARBON

Activated carbon (AC) is an incredibly diverse material that lends itself to thousands of

applications through its superior adsorbent capabilities. Activated Carbon is mainly produced in

powder, granules and pellets forms due to its varied applications The availability of high surface
area of particles possessed by AC as well its adsorptive ability makes it a significant constituent
in many industries. Industries like; petroleum, fertilizer plants, nuclear, pharmaceuticals,
cosmetics, textiles, automobile, and vacuum manufacturing all uses AC. AC has found to be
good porous materials, which make it very effective in adsorption of solutes from aqueous
solutions. This was suggested to be due to the possession of large specific surface area.
Furthermore, it has been extensively used for; solvents recovery, separation of gases, dye
removal from industrial wastewater and as a catalyst in the process of biodiesel production.