CHAPTER ONE

INTROUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Activated carbon is an amorphous form of carbon, microcrystalline, non-graphitic

in nature, a product of carbonization and activation of carbonaceous material

which has been specially treated so that it possesses a very high internal porosity

due to large surface area (3). A vast number of materials can be used to produce

activated carbon; almost any organic matter with a large percentage of carbon

could theoretically be activated to enhance its sorptive characteristics. Two distinct

types of activated carbon recognized commercially are: (i) Liquid-phase carbon

and (ii) Gas-phase carbon (5). The three major processes of producing activated

carbon are: Carbonization, purification and activation (3). According to (3), the

effectiveness of activated carbon as an adsorbent is attributed to its unique

properties, including large surface area, a high degree of surface reactivity,

universal adsorption effect, and a favourable pore size (11). Activated carbons are

used for the following: Sugar decolourization, Solvent and solution reclamation,

refining of oil and fat, removal of impurities, water purification, metal ions

removal, decolourizing, drying and degumming of petroleum fractions, removal of

industrial odour, removal of small quantities of radioactive contaminant (7). Owing

to this universal usefulness and large applications, research on the use of activated
1
carbon has attracted the interest of different scientists. Activated carbon prepared

from cocos and elaeis family has been found suitable for the removal of organic

and inorganic pollutants (13). This project discusses the preparation of activated

carbon from coconut shell and glacial shell as low cost absorbent using

orthophosphoric acid (H3PO4), potassium hydroxide (KOH), and Zinc Chloride

(ZnCl2) as activating agents.

1.2 Objective of the Study

The objective of the study is to prepared activated carbon using coconut shell and

glacial acetic as catalyst. The specific objectives are:

i. To explain the benefits of using materials from shells of nuts and glacial

acetic

ii. To review the production process of this material from coconut shell and

glacial acetic

iii. To analyze those process theoretically and recommend possible production

processes

1.3 Significant of the Study

The world production of AC in 1990 was estimated to be 375,000 ton, excluding

what was then Eastern Europe and also China (Mozammel et.al, 2002). In 2002,

the demand for activated carbon reached 200,000ton per year in United States and

the market will very probably be negatively affected by imports from the Asia-
2
Pacific region. The demands of AC were increase over the year and market growth

was estimated at 4.6% per year (Mozammel et. al, 2002). The strong market

position held by AC relates to their unique properties and low cost compared with

that of possible competitive inorganic adsorbents like zeolites.

AC is used primarily as an adsorbent to remove organic compounds and pollutant

from liquid and gas streams. The market has been increasing constantly as a

consequence of environmental issues, especially water and air purification.

Furthermore, as more and more countries are becoming industrialized, the need for

activated carbon to comply with environmental regulation will grow at faster rate.

Liquid phase applications represent the largest outlet for AC. In these applications,

AC is used in the purification of a variety of liquid streams, such as those used in

water treatment and the processing of food, beverages and pharmaceuticals. The

growth of the activated carbon market in the last two decades in the most

industrialized region will very probably continue in the near future as more

developing areas of the world will realize the importance of controlling water and

air pollution. This demand can be satisfied considering the large number of raw

material available for the production of AC, the variety of activation processes

described, and the available forms of AC. Thus, the continuous research has to be

implementing to develop the high quality of AC for specific uses.

3
1.4 Scope of the Study

Production of all these oils by the small scale or traditional producers is spread

over various areas in the country, whilst the established industries engage mostly in

production of palm oil. The supply of the palm shells is easier as many established

industries dumped the shells as a waste after getting the kernels from the nuts.

Coconut shell wastes, on the other hand, are spread over wider area in the country

and collection ore effort than that of palm shells.

In this research, the production of activated carbon was carried out by using

chemical activation method. In chemical activation, the carbonization and

activation are accomplished in a single step by carrying out the thermal

decomposition of the raw material impregnated with certain activating agents. Two

activating agents were used, there are phosphoric acid and zinc chloride. Zinc

chloride known as a Lewis acid is a strong dehydrating agent which could alter the

structure of carbon to form the porous structure. While phosphoric acid, was also

known as a strong acid acts as an acid catalyst to promote cleavage reactions

(Rodriguez-Reinoso, 2002). By using these two chemical, the influences on the

pore structure of AC produced can be compared.

After the impregnation step, the samples were carbonized in the horizontal

furnace under inert atmosphere by using nitrogen gas (N2) by varying the

operating parameter such as carbonization temperature and carbonization time. The

4
carbonization temperatures of this activation were varied between 300 to 500 ºC to

analyze the effect of temperature on the yield and pores development of activated

carbon. This work also focuses on optimizing the activation time, instead to

optimizing the activation temperature. The raw materials that have been activated

will be carbonized under certain temperature with control time of 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4

hours. After carbonization, the activated carbons produced were washed with water

or hydrochloride acid several times until the residual activating agent on the

surface of activated carbon completely removed.

This stage was important because during impregnation the activating agent will

penetrated into raw material particles and occupied substantial volumes. Once they

were extracted by intense washing, a large amount of microporosity was created.

In order to analyze the activated carbon produced, several standard analyses

were employed to characterize the product that will meet the condition for

commercialization. The characterization of the activated carbon produced were

performed by using several analyses such as the elemental analysis, proximate

analysis, pore size analysis, surface functional groups analysis and adsorption

capacity.

5
 CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Activated carbon

Activated carbon is a microcrystalline, nongraphitic form of carbon. X-ray analysis

of activated carbons shows a structure which is much more disordered than that of

graphite, having crystallites only a few layers in thickness and less than 10 nm in

width (49). The spaces between the crystallites of activated carbon constitute the

microporous structure with a large internal surface area of 250 m2/g-2500m2/g.

Because of the chemical structure of activated carbon it can preferentially adsorb

organic materials and other nonpolar compounds from the gas or liquid streams.

Due to these properties, they have been used for the purification of gases, the

separation of gas mixtures, the purification of exhausted air, especially the

recovery of solvents, the removal of heavy metals, and the decoulorization of

solutions and the purification of water for many decades. Carbonaceous adsorbents

found greater use in the solution of environmental problems related to water

purification and removal of air pollutants (49; 28). The removal of impurities from

gases and liquids by activated carbon takes place by adsorption. Adsorption is a

term which describes the existence of a higher concentration of a substance at the

interface between a fluid and a solid than is present in the fluid.

6
Fig 1: Pore Structure of Activated Carbon (TEM)

Adsorption process can be considered as either chemisorption or physical

adsorption. In physical adsorption the impurities are held on the surface of the

carbon by weak van der Waals forces while in chemisorption, the forces are

relatively strong and adsorption occurs at active sites on the surface. Therefore, in

chemisorption the efficiency of carbon will depend upon its accessible surface area

and also upon the presence of active sites on the surface where chemisorption may

occur. (In physical adsorption accessible surface area and the presence of active

sites on the surface are not important.)

7
The porous structure and chemical nature of an activated carbon is a function of

the raw materials used in its preparation and the activation method used. This is the

reason why surface area or pore volume of activated carbons can vary widely from

one kind to another.

2.2 Principle of Activation Process

The principle of manufacturing carbonaceous adsorbents is the selective removal

of some groups of compounds from a suitable carbon containing material and

generation of a highly porous solid matrix containing micropores. Removal of such

compounds can be achieved by the carbonization and activation of the raw

materials. But in chemical activation method there is no activation step.

2.3 Raw Materials

The quality of the resulting activated carbon is considerably influenced by the raw

material. Although the activation procedure employed mainly determines the

chemical nature of the surface oxides and the surface area of the resultant product,

the structure of the pores and the pore size distributions are largely predetermined

by the nature of the starting material. Any cheap substance with a high carbon and

low ash content can be used as a raw material. Raw materials for the production of

activated carbon include number of carbonaceous materials, apricot stones, wood,

peat, brown coal, bituminous coal, lignite, coconut shells, almond shells, pits from

peaches and other fruit, petroleum-based residues and pulp mill residues (6).
8
Since the manufacturing process involves the removal of volatile matter, the

economic relationship between price, availability and quality of raw materials on

one side and volatile content on the other side, is an important one. The most

important advantages of using bituminous coal and anthracite are their relatively

low volatile content and hence high yield of product. On the other hand, the

younger fossil materials-wood, (mainly birch wood and beech wood) peat and

wastes of vegetable origin (such as apricot stones, almond shell, coconut shell, saw

dust) can be activated easily and give high quality products. (49, 35)

2.4 Characterization and Properties of Activated Carbon

Characterization for activated carbon (AC) is very important in order to

classified AC for specific uses. Basically, AC characterized by physical properties

and chemical properties. As Guo and Lua(2003) mentioned that the characteristics

of activated carbon depends on the physical and chemical properties of the raw

materials as well as activation method used.

Physical properties of AC, such as ash content and moisture content can affect the

use of a granular AC and render them either suitable or unsuitable for specific

applications. While the specific surface area of activated carbon and surface

chemistry is classified as chemical properties. Furthermore, the porous structure of

activated carbon also can be characterize by various techniques such as adsorption

9
of gases(N2, Ar , Kr, CO2 ) or vapors (benzene, water), scanning electron

microscopy(SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

2.4.1 Moisture Content

Activated carbon is generally priced on a moisture free basis, although

occasionally some moisture content is stipulated, e.g., 3, 8, 10%. Unless packaged

in airtight containers, some activated carbons when stored under humid conditions

will adsorb considerable moisture over a period of month. They may adsorb as

much as 25 to 30% moisture and still appear dry. For many purposes, this moisture

content does not affect the adsorptive power, but obviously it dilutes the carbon.

Therefore, an additional weight of moist carbon is needed to provide the required

dry weight.

2.4.2 Ash content

The ash content of a carbon is the residue that remains when the carbonaceous

materials is burned off. As activated carbon contain inorganic constituents derived

from the source materials and from activating agents added during manufacture,

the total amount of inorganic constituents will vary from one grade of carbon to

another. The inorganic constituents in a carbon are usually reported as being in the

form in which they appear when the carbon is ashed.

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2.4.3 Surface area

Generally, the larger the specific surface area of the adsorbent, the better its

adsorption performance will be (Guo and Lua, 2003). The most widely used

commercial active carbons have a specific surface area of the order of 600- 1200 m

2 /g (Ng et.al, 2002). The pore volume limits the size of the molecules that can be

adsorbed whilst the surface area limits the amount of material which can be

adsorbed, assuming a suitable molecular size (Lartley, 1999). The adsorptive

capacity of adsorbent is related to its internal surface area and pore volume.

2.4.4 Surface Functional Group of Activated Carbon

The selectivity of activated carbons for adsorption is depended upon their

surface chemistry, as well as their pore size distribution (Radovic,2001). Normally,

the adsorptive surface of activated carbon is approximately neutral such as that

polar and ionic species are less readily adsorbed than organic molecules.

2.5 Production Methods

Activated carbon can be prepared by one of the following two methods:

i. By carbonizing material of vegetable origin with the addition of activating

agents which influence the course of carbonization. The method is generally

known as "chemical activation".

ii. By allowing the inactive carbonized product prepared by the usual methods

of carbonization to react with suitable, usually gaseous (generally steam or

11
 carbon dioxide) substance. This procedure is known as "physical activation"

or "gas activation"

In contemporary technologies both types of activation, chemical and physical are

widely used. Although high quality products can be obtained by both procedures,

sometimes, they are not equally good for all purposes. For example, for the

recovery of solvent, chemically activated carbons are preferred, whereas for water

treatment, carbon activated with steam appears to be preferable (49).

2.6 Chemical Activation

Activated carbon can be prepared by chemical activation. In this method, the

carbonaceous material is carbonized after the addition of substances which restrict

the formation of tar. Used chemical is recovered for reuse and to free the pores

after carbonization. Through chemical activation, a carbonized product with very

good sorption properties can be obtained in a single operation. Chemical activation

is used almost exclusively for carbons produced from materials of recent origin,

namely lignocellulosic materials. The activation agent influences the pyrolytic

process. By this technique the formation of tar is restricted to a minimum. The

yield of carbon in the carbonized product is increased accordingly. Furthermore,

temperature needed for pyrolysis is also lower than that needed for activation with

gaseous agents in physical activation, and this promotes the development of a

12
porous structure. Under these conditions elementary crystallites of smaller

dimensions, (micropores) are formed (6).

The most widely used activation agents are phosphoric acid, zinc chloride and

potassium sulphide. In some studies hydroxides of an alkali metal, magnesium and

calcium chloride and other substances are also used. All these chemicals are strong

dehydrating agents. On calcination, the impregnated chemicals dehydrate the raw

materials, which results in changing and aromatization of the carbon skeleton by

the creation of a porous structure and surface area.

The material mainly used in the production of activated carbon consists

predominantly of cellulose, and therefore in a discussion of the mechanism of

chemical activation, the action of the chemical agent on cellulose must first be

considered. Cellulose is composed of elongated macromolecules, up to 1800 nm -

2000 nm long, orientated in the direction of their longitudinal axes, which form

agglomerates known as micelles. The orientated chains of molecules are laterally

bounded by bonds of different types of strength. The electrolytic action of the

activation agent causes the cellulose to undergo a change known as swelling,

during which the arrangement of the molecules in the direction of the longitudinal

axis remain unchanged, but the lateral bonds are broken down with the result that

the inter-and-intra micelle voids increase until finally the cellulose is dispersed.

Simultaneously other reactions, hydrolytic or oxidative, take place, by which the

13
macromolecules are gradually depolymerized. The processes lead to the formation

of a homogeneous plastic mass consisting of the partially depolymerized substance

uniformly saturated with the activation agent (49). The activated carbons produced

through chemical activation, especially when ZnCl2 is used, must be cleaned from

the chemical agent before their commercial use. One advantage of using

phosphoric acid in chemical activation is that, it can be cleaned from the activated

carbon by rinsing with boiling pure water.

2.6.1 Chemical Properties of Activated Carbon

The adsorptive properties of activated carbon are determined not only by its pore

structure but also by its chemical composition. Activated carbon contains two

types of admixtures. One of them is represented by chemically bonded elements, in

the first place oxygen and hydrogen. These are derived from the starting material

and remain in the structure of activated carbon as a result of imperfect

carbonization or become chemically bonded to the surface during activation.

The other type of admixture consists of ash which is not an organic part of the

product. The elemental composition of activated carbon typically comprises 85-90

% C, 0.5 % H, 0.5 % N, 5 % O, and 1 % S, the balance of 5-6 % representing

inorganic (ash) constituents. However, these values cannot serve as specification

for activated carbon's quality or properties (22).

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Surface area generated by the more reactive edges of the microcrystallite will

contain a wide variety of functional groups and will accordingly quite

heterogeneous in nature. The nature of the relevant functional groups is determined

to a large extent by the method of activation as well as by the type of raw material

from which the activated carbon is produced (17; 58).

2.6.1.1 Oxygen Containing Functional Groups

The oxygen of starting material has a considerable influence on the arrangement

and size of the elementary crystallites formed in carbonaceous adsorbents. In

adsorbents prepared from materials of high oxygen content, the distance between

the parallel graphitic layers is appreciably smaller. Moreover the course of

carbonization and the required carbonization temperature depend very much on the

oxygen content of raw material.

2.6.1.2 Hydrogen Containing Functional Groups

Materials prior to activation contain hydrogen in the form of hydrocarbon chains

and rings attached to border atoms of the hexagon planes. Most of this hydrogen is

removed during activation at temperatures below 950oC, but some hydrogen is still

held after activation and is not released unless much higher temperatures are

reached. It is to be noted that, the evolution of this latter portion of hydrogen at

very high temperatures is paralled by a simultaneous decrease in adsorptive power.

15
2.7 Physical Activation

a. Carbonization

The method of production of the carbonized intermediate product has a marked

effect on the quality of the final activated carbon product. The main aim of

carbonization is to reduce the volatile content of the source material in order to

convert it to a suitable form for activation. During the phase of the carbonization,

carbon content of the product attains a value of about 80 percent.

By carbonization most of the non-carbon elements, hydrogen and oxygen are first

removed in gaseous form by pyrolytic decomposition of the starting material and

the freed atoms of elementary carbon are grouped into organized crystallographic

formation known as elementary graphitic crystallites.

Carbonization of lignocellulosic material starts above 170oC and it is nearly

completed around 500oC- 600oC. In the production of charcoal, it is desirable to

carry out its pyrolysis sufficiently quickly, in order to reduce the time of contact of

the carbon formed with the decomposition products. The rate of pyrolysis is

significantly influenced by the moisture content of the starting material. Further

important factors are uniform heating of the retort and the temperature of

carbonization which must not be very high.

In the simple carbonization product, the mutual arrangement of the crystallites is

irregular, so that free interstices remain between them. However, as a result of

16
deposition and decomposition of tarry substances, these become filled or at least

blocked by disorganized (amorphous) carbon. The resulting carbonized product

has small adsorption capacity. Presumably, at least for carbonization at lower

temperatures, part of the formed tar remains in the pores between the crystallites

and on their surface. Such carbonized materials can then be partially activated by

removing the tarry products by heating them in a stream of an inert gas, or by

extracting them with a suitable solvent, or by a chemical reaction (for example,

heating in an atmosphere of sulphur vapor at temperatures lower than those at

which reactions with carbon take place) (48; 58).

2.8 Physical Structure of Activated Carbon

The structure studies of Franklin (1951) on carbonized materials showed two

distinct well defined classes; nongraphitizing carbons and graphitizing carbon.

Schematic Representation of (a) Nongraphitizing and (b) Graphitizing Structure of

Activated Carbon (49)

17
In general, the nongraphitizing carbons are formed from substances containing

little hydrogen or more oxygen. On heating such substances, at low temperature

develops a strong system of cross linking of crystallites forming porous mass. The

graphitizing carbons are prepared from substances containing more hydrogen. The

crystallites remain relatively mobile during the early stages of carbonization and

cross linking is much weaker. As a result, softer and less porous carbon is

obtained.

The basic structural character of activated carbon is closely approximated by the

structure of pure graphite. The graphite crystal is composed of layers of fused

hexagons held approximately 0.335 nm apart by van der Waals forces (49).

18
Fig 2: Carbon Atom Arrangements in Graphite Crystal

However, the structure of activated carbon differs somewhat from that of graphite.

During carbonization process, several aromatic nuclei, having a structure similar to

that of graphite are formed. Planar separation distance in carbon is approximately

0.36 nm. From X-ray spectrograph, these structures have been interpreted as

microcrystallite consisting of fused hexagonal rings of carbon atoms structurally,

19
carbon can therefore be considered to consist of rigid interlinked cluster of

microcrytallites. Each microcrystallite comprises a stack of graphite planes.

Microcrystallites are interconnected by interaction of functional groups terminating

the graphitic planes. The diameter of the planes forming the microcrystallites, as

well as the stacking height, has been estimated at 2 nm -5 nm indicating that each

microcrystallite consists of about 5-15 layers of graphite planes (59).

2.9 Pore Structure of Activated Carbon

During the process of activation, the spaces between the elementary crystallites

become cleared of various carbonaceous compounds and nonorganized carbon.

Carbon is also removed partially from the graphitic layers of the elementary

crystallites. The resulting voids are termed as pores. Results seem to indicate that,

there are pores with a contracted entrance (ink-bottle shaped) pores in the shape of

capillaries open at both ends or with one end closed, pores in the shape of more or

less regular slits between two planes, vshaped, tapered pores, and other forms.

In most cases, however it is difficult to determine the pore shapes reliably.

However, the calculation of diameters of pores assuming cylindrical capillary

shapes yields values which approach more nearly the actual dimensions of the

pores. Activated carbon usually has pores belonging to several groups, each group

having a certain range of values for the effective dimensions.

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Pores of an effective diameter larger than about 50 nm, are classified as

macropores. Their volume in the activated carbon is generally between 0.2 cm3/g

and 0.5 cm3/g and their surface area is 0.5 m2/g to 2 m2/g. Transitional pores are

those in which capillary condensation with the formation of a meniscus of the

liquefied adsorbate can take place. This phenomenon usually produces the

hysteresis loop on the adsorption isotherm.

The effective diameters of transitional pores are in the range of 2 nm to 50 nm.

Their specific surface area is generally around 5 % of the total surface area of the

activated carbon. Pores with an effective diameter of less than about 2 nm are

called micropores. The micropore volume is generally around 0.15 cm3/g to 0.50

cm3/g. usually the specific surface area of micropores amounts to over 90 % of the

total specific surface area (49; 42).

Each of these three groups of pores has its specific function in the process of

adsorption on activated carbon. According to the type of application, the

percentages of the transitional pores and the micropores could be adjusted

employing special production procedures.

2.10 Factors Affecting Activated Carbon Production

The factors are:

i. High carbon content

ii. Low in inorganic content (i.e low ash)

21
iii. High density and sufficient volatile content

iv. The stability of supply in the countries

v. Potential extent of activation

vi. Inexpensive material

vii. Low degradation upon storage

2.11 Carbonization

During carbonization, most of the non-carbon elements, hydrogen and

oxygen are first removed in gaseous form by pyrolytic decomposition of the

starting materials, and the free atoms of elementary carbon are grouped into

organized crystallographic formations known as elementary graphite crystallites

(Manocha, 2003). The original organic substance may be split into fragments

which regroup to form the thermo-stable aromatic structure existing in the

hexagon.

2.12 Coconut

Coconut is a popular plantation and is grown in more than 90 countries worldwide.

The world production of coconut sums up to around 55 million tonnes annually

[6]. Coconut production plays an important role in India. India accounts for 22.34

per cent of the world’s coconut production and is one of the major players in the

world’s coconut trade. Coconut shell is an agricultural waste and is available in

plentiful quantities throughout tropical countries worldwide. In many countries,

22
coconut shell is subjected to open burning which contributes significantly to CO 2

and methane emissions.

Coconut shell is widely used for making charcoal. The traditional pit method of

production has a charcoal yield of 25–30% of the dry weight of shells used. The

charcoal produced by this method is of variable quality, and often contaminated

with extraneous matter and soil. The smoke evolved from pit method is not only a

nuisance but also a health hazard. The coconut shell has a high calorific value of

20.8MJ/kg and can be used to produce steam, energy-rich gases, bio-oil, biochar

etc. It is to be noted that coconut shell and coconut husk are solid fuels and have

the peculiarities and problems inherent in this kind of fuel.

23
Coconut shell is more suitable for pyrolysis process as it contain lower ash content,

high volatile matter content and available at a cheap cost. The higher fixed carbon

content leads to the production to a high-quality solid residue which can be used as

activated carbon in wastewater treatment. Coconut shell can be easily collected in

places where coconut meat is traditionally used in food processing.

2.13 Acetic acid

Acetic acid is an acidic, colourless liquid and organic compound with the chemical

formula CH3COOH (also written as CH3CO2H, C2H4O2, or HC2H3O2). Vinegar is at

least 4% acetic acid by volume, making acetic acid the main component of vinegar

apart from water and other trace elements. Acetic acid is the second simplest

carboxylic acid (after formic acid). It is an important chemical reagent and

industrial chemical, used primarily in the production of cellulose acetate for

photographic film, polyvinyl acetate for wood glue, and synthetic fibres and

fabrics. In households, diluted acetic acid is often used in descaling agents. In the

food industry, acetic acid is controlled by the food additive code E260 as an acidity

regulator and as a condiment. In biochemistry, the acetyl group, derived from

acetic acid, is fundamental to all forms of life. When bound to coenzyme A, it is

central to the metabolism of carbohydrates and fats.

The global demand for acetic acid is about 6.5 million metric tons per year (t/a), of

which approximately 1.5 t/a is met by recycling; the remainder is manufactured

24
from methanol.[8] Vinegar is mostly dilute acetic acid, often produced by

fermentation and subsequent oxidation of ethanol.

2.14 Review of previous works

P.K Mallick , 2004 used Mahogany sawdust to develop an effective carbon

adsorbent. This adsorbent was employed for the removal of dyes from spent textile

dyeing wastewater. The experimental data were fitted to Langmuir and Freundlich

models of adsorption.

25
M.M.Nourouzi and T.G.Chuah in 2009 studied the adsorption behavior on

Reactive Black and Reactive red 3 using Palm Kernel Shell Activated carbon.

Applications of batch kinetic data to pore and film surface diffusion models were

explored.

Jun –jie Gao et al., 2013 produced activated carbon from tea seed shells. They

obtained activated carbon of BET surface area 1530 m 2 /g. The precursor was

chemically activated using zinc chloride and pyrolysed in a tubular furnace at 500

o C for one hour duration at a heating rate 5 o C/min.

Halandemiral et al., 2008, prepared activated carbon from Hazelnut bagasse

through chemical activation technique. The surface area developed was significant

1489 m 2 /g. It was employed to remove Sandolan blue from the water bodies.

There were some experiments on characterization of different type of activated

carbon which were given in the previous table. These activated carbon materials

are characterized by their large surface areas and better porosity which was well

developed. For these reasons activated carbons are commercially used as

adsorbents for the removal of some organic chemicals and metal ions of

environmental, potable water, waste water and removal of some gases. For the

analysis of the surface physical properties of the carbon which includes the

determination of the total surface area, extent of micro-porosity and

characterization of the pore distribution. The total surface area can be measured by
26
using BET method and pore structure can be shown by SEM test. Pore volume and

porosity can be obtained from porosimetry. The adsorbent having large pore

volume is used as better adsorbent for the adsorption process.

27