1.

ADSORPTION PROPERTIES:
1a. CCl4 # 1b. Iodine # 1c. Molasses# 1d. Surface Area
2. PHYSICAL PROPERTIES:
2a. Bulk Density 2b.Hardness 2c. Moisture
3. TOTAL ASH CONTENT
4. pH VALUE
5. PARTICLE SIZE
6. SIZING CONVENTION

1. ADSORPTION PROPERTIES

The effectiveness of activated carbon is usually specified by the amount of a certain test chemicals it can adsorb
per unit weight of activated carbon used. For activated carbon used for filtering air and gases, the test chemical
used is usually Carbon Tetrachloride, commonly designated as CTC or CCl4. For activated carbon used in
filtering water and liquids, the test chemical used is usually Iodine mixed with water.

1a. Carbon Tetrachloride Number* (CCl4 Number)

This number is tested using ASTM (American Society for Testing & Materials) D3467-99. A known quantity
of activated carbon is weighed before the experiment, then a mixture of carbon tetrachloride and air, at a specific
temperature and concentration, is passed over the activated carbon. When the activated carbon does not increase
in weight any further, it has soaked up all the CCl4 it can for that grade of activated carbon. The increase in
weight then is the amount of CCl4 adsorbed. A good grade of activated carbon will soak up at least 60% of its
own original weight and is said to have a Carbon Tetrachloride Number of 60. Better grades can soak up 70%,
80% and even 90%.

* Due to the adverse effects of Carbon Tetrachloride on the environment, the activated carbon industry is
phasing out this test and substituting a similar test, ASTM D 5228-92, which uses n-butane, and hence is
known as the Butane Number Test. Most people are still using the Carbon Tetrachloride Number terminology
out of familiarity. To obtain Carbon Tetrachloride Number from Butane Number, multiply the Butane Number
by 2.55.

1b. Iodine number

This number is tested using ASTM D4607-94. A known quantity of activated carbon is ground up into powder
and mixed into a standard solution of Iodine in water. After mixing, a certain amount of the Iodine is adsorbed.
By finding out how much Iodine is left in the solution, we can determine how much Iodine had been adsorbed
by the amount of activated carbon used. This number is usually expressed as milligrams of Iodine adsorbed per
gram of activated carbon used. An Iodine number of 900 for an activated carbon is a good grade. A more
expensive grade of activated carbon has an Iodine Number of greater than 1000.

1c. Molasses Number

In applications such as decolorizing liquids and in applications where the molecules to be adsorbed are
relatively large (such as in aquarium cleanup), the activated carbon is manufactured in such a fashion so as to
favor the predominance of larger pores. The Molasses Number Test is specifically designed to test for the
ability of the activated carbon to adsorb larger molecular substances. In the Molasses Number Test, activated
carbon is rated by testing its ability to adsorb molasses, which has large molecules, dissolved in distilled water.

A standard solution of blackstrap molasses in distilled water is prepared. The activated carbon to be tested and
an identical quantity of a standard activated carbon of known Molasses number are added separately to the
standard molasses solution. The degree of transparency in each case due to the molasses being adsorbed by the
carbon is measured with an optical instrument and compared.

A practical number for Molasses Number is around 230. Unless needed, this number is normally not specified.

1d. Surface Area

When looked under the microscope, a granule of activated carbon is full of tiny holes. It is these holes which
give the activated carbon the large surface area. The larger the area, the more it can adsorb. Typically a
teaspoonful of activated carbon has enough surface area to cover a football field, ~1000 m2/gram.

To measure the surface area of all these tiny holes, a test method, known as the BET method is used. The BET
Method measures the area by determining the amount of liquid nitrogen needed to evenly cover all the surface
in these holes. The BET Method is used in activated carbon research and is not a practical method to be used as
a quality control tool. The Iodine Number and the Carbon Tetrachloride Number, both of which measure the
adsorption capacity, are ordinarily used to monitor quality during production.
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2a. Bulk Density

This is a property of activated carbon that is required by the engineers to find out how many lbs of activated
carbon he must buy to fill up a certain volume of a tank. It is also know as the Apparent Density. A typical Bulk
Density number to use for activated carbon is 28 - 30 lbs/cu. ft. (450 - 550 grams/liter ). Bulk density is
affected by the raw material used and the degree of activation. The density does not affect the effectiveness of
the activated carbon measured in adsorption per unit weight, but will have an effect on adsorption per unit
volume.
The standard test method for bulk or apparent density of activated carbon is ASTM D2854-96.

2b. Hardness Number

The harder the activated carbon, the less it will crumble into fine particles during handling and use. The fine
particles would then escape from the system, resulting in losses. To define this property, a certain amount of
activated carbon is put into a pan, together with some steel balls, and shaken for a defined period of time. That is
why this property is often known as Ball-Pan Hardness. Weighing the carbon before and after the shaking
determines the amount of loss. The the % of the original carbon that is left after the shaking is the Hardness
Number. 95% and above is a good Hardness Number.
The standard test method for Ball-Pan Hardness of activated carbon is ASTM D3802-79.

2c. Moisture

Activated carbon is made by passing hot air and steam over coal in a kiln. Sometimes the resulting activated
carbon is washed in a bath of acid, rinsed and then dried again. There is bound to be some amount of moisture
left in the activated carbon upon final drying. A practical limit for the level of moisture present in the activated
carbon, when packed at the factory, is 3%.
The standard test method for Moisture in activated carbon is ASTM D2867-99.

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3. TOTAL ASH CONTENT

Activated carbon is made from coal, which is 85-95% carbon, the remainder is made up of various minerals.
These minerals remains as ash when the activated carbon is incinerated. To test for the Ash Content, a known
quantity of dry activated carbon is ground up into powder and heated in a hot kiln until all the carbon has been
burnt off. The weight of the remaining ash, expressed as a % of the original weight of activated carbon, is the
Ash Content of the activated carbon.

Activated carbon made from coal has typical Ash Content of 8 - 12%.

The minerals in the coal can leach into the water it is filtering. Hence, for treating drinking water, this Ash
Content of the activated carbon should be kept at a minimum. The Ash Content of activated carbon can be
lowered by eliminating non-carbon material in the coal raw material, using a washing process, or the activated
carbon product is wash in a bath of acid, then re-dried.
The standard test method for the Ash Content is ASTM D2866-94.

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4. pH VALUE

The pH Value of activated carbon is a measure of whether it is acidic or basic. The pH of a neutral substance,
such as pure water, has a value of 7. A pH of less than 7 means that the substance is acidic and a pH of greater
than 7 means that it is basic. The lowest pH number is 0 highest 14 . Activated carbon, when coming out of the
kiln tends to be a bit basic, with a pH of around 8. Too high a pH indicates too much contaminants. Too low a
pH, especially for acid washed activated carbon, means that the acid has not been properly rinsed away. Most
activated carbon are specified for a pH of 6 - 8.

The standard test method for pH of Activated Carbon is ASTM D3838-80.

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5. PARTICLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION

Different particle sizea of activated carbon offer different flow resistance to the air or water it is filtering.
Depending upon the situation, system designers will specify different particle sizes of the activated carbon to be
used.

Typically, for filtering air or gases, the larger granule sizes are used; for filtering water or fluids, the smaller
granule sizes are used.

Granules sizes are rated by the size of the sieve used to separate the particles. A #4 sieve has 4 holes to the inch
and therefore, accounting for the dimension of the wires which makeup the sieve, each hole is then slightly
smaller than 1/4 of an inch. Similarly a #8 sieve will have hole sizes slightly less then 1/8 of an inch. An activated
carbon sized 4x8 contains granules that can pass through a #4 sieve but not through a #8 sieve and will have
granules ranging from slightly under 1/4 inch to slightly under 1/8 inch.

The proportion of the larger granules vs the smaller granules can be measured by using intermediate sieve sizes.
The proportions of these intermediate sizes can be used to calculate the Uniformity Coefficient, which is a
measure of how the fluids would flow around that activated carbon due to the distribution of the various granule
sizes.
Typical air and gas sizes, the so-called vapor phase sizes, are 4x6, 4x8 and 4x10. Common sizes for water and
fluids, the liquid phase sizes, are 12x40, 8x30, 6x12, 6x16, etc.

Sometimes the activated carbon are ground up into powder, mixed with a binder such as coal tar, and extruded
into small cylindrical pellets. These pellets are more uniform and offer less flow resistance in use than granules
of similar packing density. Hence, pellets are commonly used in vapor phase applications. 3mm pellets are used
interchangeably with 4x8 granules; and 4mm pellets are used interchangeably with 4x6 granules.

The standard test method for Particle Size Distribution is ASTM D2862-82.

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6. Conventions Used in Defining Activated Carbon Sizes

Size for activated carbon is classified by the size of the sieves which are used to screen the crushed activated
carbon, after it comes out of the kiln.

For example: An 8x30 size carbon will contain granules that passes through a #8 sieve but did not pass through
a #30 sieve. There is usually a 3-5% tolerance.

A #8 sieve will have 8 holes to the inch and therefore, accounting the diameter of the wire which make up the
sieve, will have slightly less than 1/8" square holes.

Mesh A A B B
U.S. Inches mm Inches mm
4 1/4" 6.350 0.218" 5.535
8 1/8" 3.175 0.093" 2.360
10 1/10" 2.540 0.079" 2.000
12 1/12" 2.117 0.065" 1.650
14 1/14" 1.814 0.055" 1.400
16 1/16" 1.588 0.046" 1.170
20 1/20" 1.270 0.033" 0.833
30 1/30" 0.846 0.023" 0.583
40 1/40" 0.635 0.016" 0.417

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