Adsorption of phenol by oil-palm-shell activated carbons

Steam activated carbons from oil-palm shells were prepared and used in the adsorption of phenol. The activated carbon had a well-developed mesopore structure which accounted for 45% of the total pore volume. The BET surface area of the activated carbon was 1183 m²/g and a total pore volume of 0.69 cm³/g using N₂ adsorption at 77 K. The adsorption capacity of the activated carbon for phenol was 319 mg/g of adsorbent at 298 K. The adsorption isotherms could be described by both the Langmuir-Freundlich and the Langmuir equations. The adsorption kinetics consisted of a rapid initial uptake phase, followed by a slow approach to equilibrium. A new multipore model is proposed that takes into account of a concentration dependent surface diffusion coefficient within the particle. This model is an improvement to the traditional branched pore model. The theoretical concentration versus time curve generated by the proposed model fitted the experimental data for phenol adsorption reasonably well. Phenol adsorption tests were also carried out on a commercial activated carbon known as Calgon OLC Plus 12×30 and the agreement between these adsorption data and the proposed model was equally good.     

Hydrogen adsorption in transition metal carbon nano-structures

Templated microporous carbons were synthesized from metal impregnated zeolite Y templates. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) were employed to characterize morphology and structure of the generated carbon materials. The surface area, micro- and meso-pore volumes, as well as the pore size distribution of all the carbon materials were determined by N₂ adsorption at 77 K and correlated to their hydrogen storage capacity. All the hydrogen adsorption isotherms were Type 1 and reversible, indicating physisorption at 77 K. Most templated carbons show good hydrogen storage with the best sample Rh-C having surface area 1817 m²/g and micropore volume 1.04 cm³/g, achieving the highest as 8.8 mmol/g hydrogen storage capacity at 77 K, 1 bar. Comparison between activated carbons and synthesized templated carbons revealed that the hydrogen adsorption in the latter carbon samples occurs mainly by pore filling and smaller pores of sizes around 6 Å to 8 Å are filled initially, followed by larger micropores. Overall, hydrogen adsorption was found to be dependent on the micropore volume as well as the pore-size, larger micropore volumes showing higher hydrogen adsorption capacity.     

The effect of small micropores on methane adsorption of coals from Northern China

In this study, the effect of coal micropores on the adsorption properties, especially the Langmuir pressure (P _L ), was investigated by testing 11 coal samples from Northern China. The adsorption of CO₂ at 273 K was utilized to analyze the pore size distribution. The results of these coals show that micropore volume and micropore surface area are the major factors affecting the Langmuir volume (V _L ) but have weaker effects on P _L . Micropore filling theory considers that some smaller micropores with an obvious overlapping adsorption force cause volume filling adsorption. These micropores firstly reach saturated adsorption, controlling the adsorption volume at the low-pressure stage and thus have a great effect on P _L . Four times the methane molecular diameter, 1.5 nm, was assumed as the critical pore size with obvious overlapping adsorption force. The relationship between P _L and the proportion of the pore volume below 1.5 nm to the micropore volume was investigated, and it was found that the higher the volume proportion of these small micropores was, the smaller the P _L was, though two data points deviated from this trend. The reason for the anomalous coal samples could be the deviation from the assumed critical pore size of 1.5 nm for volume filling and the effects of the various micropore surface properties, which await further study. The micropore surface increases with increasing coal rank, as does V _L . The proportion of pore volume below 1.5 nm increases with coal rank, and P _L reverses. However, these relationships are discrete.     

Synthesis of High‐Surface‐Area Nitrogen‐Doped Porous Carbon Microflowers and Their Efficient Carbon Dioxide Capture Performance

Sustainable carbon materials have received particular attention in CO₂ capture and storage owing to their abundant pore structures and controllable pore parameters. Here, we report high‐surface‐area hierarchically porous N‐doped carbon microflowers, which were assembled from porous nanosheets by a three‐step route: soft‐template‐assisted self‐assembly, thermal decomposition, and KOH activation. The hydrazine hydrate used in our experiment serves as not only a nitrogen source, but also a structure‐directing agent. The activation process was carried out under low (KOH/carbon=2), mild (KOH/carbon=4) and severe (KOH/carbon=6) activation conditions. The mild activated N‐doped carbon microflowers (A‐NCF‐4) have a hierarchically porous structure, high specific surface area (2309 m² g^?1), desirable micropore size below 1 nm, and importantly large micropore volume (0.95 cm³ g^?1). The remarkably high CO₂ adsorption capacities of 6.52 and 19.32 mmol g^?1 were achieved with this sample at 0 °C (273 K) and two pressures, 1 bar and 20 bar, respectively. Furthermore, this sample also exhibits excellent stability during cyclic operations and good separation selectivity for CO₂ over N₂.     

Effect of the chemical and structural modification of CMK-3 mesoporous carbon molecular sieve on hydrogen adsorption

The effect of the conditions of postsynthetic modification of CMK-3 carbon mesoporous molecular sieves on their structural and adsorption properties was studied. The specific surface, volume, pore size, and hydrogen adsorption are markedly enhanced upon activation of CMK-3 by thermal, steam, and chemical treatment using H₂, CO₂, H₂O₂, and HNO₃. Analysis of the occupancy density of the mesopore surface indicated increased hydrogen adsorption capacity of the hydrogen-activated carbon surface of CMK-3. Hydrogen adsorption is increased from 1.20 to 2.23 mass % at 1 atm and 77 K by steam treatment. This effect may be employed to create efficient carbon MMS adsorbents, including composite adsorbents, for the accumulation and storage of hydrogen at high pressure (adsorption >6 mass %).     

The Use of High Surface Area Mesoporous-Activated Carbon from Longan Seed Biomass for Increasing Capacity and Kinetics of Methylene Blue Adsorption from Aqueous Solution

Microporous- and mesoporous-activated carbons were produced from longan seed biomass through physical activation with CO₂ under the same activation conditions of time and temperature. The specially prepared mesoporous carbon showed the maximum porous properties with the specific surface area of 1773 m²/g and mesopore volume of 0.474 cm³/g which accounts for 44.1% of the total pore volume. These activated carbons were utilized as porous adsorbents for the removal of methylene blue (MB) from an aqueous solution and their effectiveness was evaluated for both the adsorption kinetics and capacity. The adsorption kinetic data of MB were analyzed by the pseudo-first-order model, the pseudo-second-order model, and the pore-diffusion model equations. It was found that the adsorption kinetic behavior for all carbons tested was best described by the pseudo-second-order model. The effective pore diffusivity (D_e) derived from the pore-diffusion model had the values of 4.657 × 10⁻⁷–6.014 × 10⁻⁷ cm²/s and 4.668 × 10⁻⁷–19.920 × 10⁻⁷ cm²/s for the microporous- and mesoporous-activated carbons, respectively. Three well-known adsorption models, namely the Langmuir, Freundlich and Redlich–Peterson equations were tested with the experimental MB adsorption isotherms, and the results showed that the Redlich–Peterson model provided the overall best fitting of the isotherm data. In addition, the maximum capacity for MB adsorption of 1000 mg/g was achieved with the mesoporous carbon having the largest surface area and pore volume. The initial pH of MB solution had virtually no effect on the adsorption capacity and removal efficiency of the methylene blue dye. Increasing temperature over the range from 35 to 55 °C increased the adsorption of methylene blue, presumably caused by the increase in the diffusion rate of methylene blue to the adsorption sites that could promote the interaction frequency between the adsorbent surface and the adsorbate molecules. Overall, the high surface area mesoporous carbon was superior to the microporous carbon in view of the adsorption kinetics and capacity, when both carbons were used for the removal of MB from an aqueous solution.     

Vanadium separation with activated carbon and iron/activated carbon nanocomposites in fixed bed column: experimental and modelling study

In this work, iron nanoparticles were impregnated onto a commercial activated carbon surface to produce a novel adsorbent called iron-activated carbon nanocomposite (I-AC). Commercial activated carbon (CAC) and I-AC were used for vanadium separation in a fixed-bed column. The effects of various operating parameters such as inlet vanadium ion concentration, adsorbent dose and volumetric flow rate on vanadium separation performance of CAC were investigated. The performance of both adsorbents was compared in three adsorption/desorption cycles. The experimental breakthrough curves of vanadium ions in the fixed-bed column were modeled using the film-pore-surface diffusion model (FPSDM). The four mass transfer parameters characterizing this model, namely the external mass-transfer coefficient (k _f ), pore and surface diffusion coefficients (D _p and D _s ), and axial dispersion coefficient (D _L ) were evaluated through the model. Modelling and experimental results showed that the I-AC nanocomposite has a better performance for vanadium separation in comparison to AC. Sensitivity analysis on the FPSDM showed that the pore and surface diffusion, external mass transfer and axial dispersion play a significant role in vanadium separation using the I-AC. On the other hand, surface diffusion resulted to be relatively less important when CAC was used.     

Preparation and structure characterization of carbons prepared from resorcinol-formaldehyde resin by CO2 activation

In this work, carbon xerogels with a high pore volume and surface area (up to 2.58 cm³/g and 3200 m²/g respectively) have been synthesized using the sol-gel polycondensation of resorcinol (R) with formaldehyde (F) in a basic medium of monoethanolamine (MEA), followed by drying and pyrolysis. This medium (MEA) has not been used in previous investigations. The effect of activation with CO₂ on the pore size distribution and the chemical functional groups has been investigated using N₂ (77 K) adsorption, FTIR and elemental analysis techniques. A series of experiments has been conducted to investigate the effect of activation time and activation temperature. Activation of the samples was carried out at 850, 900 and 980 °C for times ranging from one to three hours. Within the range of activation conditions, an increase in activation time at 850 °C results in a continuous steady rise of the BET surface area and total pore volume. However, at the two higher temperatures, the surface area shows a maximum when plotted against activation time. FT-IR results show that the use of MEA as a catalyst leads to the formation of nitrogen functional groups in the surface of the resin.     

One‐stage Template‐free KOH Activation for Mesopore‐enriched Carbons and Their Application in CO2 Capture

Activated carbons with a high mesoporous structure were prepared by a one‐stage KOH activation process without the assistance of templates and further used as adsorbents for CO₂ capture. The physical and chemical properties as well as the pore structures of the resulting mesoporous carbons were characterized by N₂ adsorption isotherms, scanning electron microscopy (SEM ), X‐ray diffraction (XRD ), Raman spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR ) spectroscopy. The activated carbon showed greater specific surface area and mesopore volume as the activation temperature was increased up to 600°C, showing a uniform pore structure, great surface area (up to ~815 m²/g), and high mesopore ratio (~55%). The activated sample exhibited competitive CO₂ adsorption capacities at 1 atm pressure, reaching 2.29 and 3.4 mmol/g at 25 and 0°C, respectively. This study highlights the potential of well‐designed mesoporous carbon as an adsorbent for CO₂ removal and widespread gas adsorption applications.     

Tuning of Microenvironment in Covalent Organic Framework via Fluorination Strategy promotes Selective CO2 Capture

Herein, we have designed and synthesized two heteroatom (N, O) rich covalent organic frameworks (COF), PD-COF and TF-COF , respectively, to demonstrate their relative effect on CO₂ adsorption capacity and also CO₂/N₂ selectivity. Compared to the non-fluorinated PD-COF (BET surface area 805 m² g⁻¹, total pore volume 0.3647 ccg⁻¹), a decrease in BET surface area and also pore volume have been observed for fluorinated TF-COF due to the incorporation of fluorine to the porous framework (BET surface area 451 m² g⁻¹, total pore volume 0.2978 ccg⁻¹). This fact leads to an enormous decrease in the CO₂ adsorption capacity and CO₂/N₂ selectivity of TF-COF , though it shows stronger affinity towards CO₂ with a Qst of 37.76 KJ/mol. The more CO₂ adsorption capacity by PD-COF can be attributed to the large specific surface area with considerable amount of micropore volume compared to the TF-COF . Further, PD-COF exhibited CO₂/N₂ selectivity of 16.8, higher than that of TF-COF (CO₂/N₂ selectivity 13.4).     

Three‐Dimensional Ultralarge‐Pore Ia3d Mesoporous Silica with Various Pore Diameters and Their Application in Biomolecule Immobilization

Highly ordered mesoporous three‐dimensional Ia3d silica (KIT‐6) with different pore diameters has been synthesized by using pluronic P123 as surfactant template and n‐butanol as cosolvent at different synthesis temperatures in a highly acidic medium. The materials were characterized by XRD and N₂ adsorption. The synthesis temperature plays a significant role in controlling the pore diameter, surface area, and pore volume of the materials. The material prepared at 150 °C, KIT‐6‐150, has a large pore diameter (11.3 nm) and a high specific pore volume (1.53 cm³ g^?1). We also demonstrate immobilization of lysozyme, which is a stable and hard protein, on KIT‐6 materials with different pore diameters. The amount of lysozyme adsorbed on large‐pore KIT‐6 is extremely large (57.2 μmol g^?1) and is much higher than that observed for mesoporous silicas MCM‐41, SBA‐15, and KIT‐5, mesoporous carbons, and carbon nanocages. The effect of various parameters such as buffer concentration, adsorption temperature, concentration of the lysozyme, and the textural parameter of the adsorbent on the lysozyme adsorption capacity of KIT‐6 was studied. The amount adsorbed mainly depends on solution pH, ionic strength, adsorption temperature, and pore volume and pore diameter of the adsorbent. The mechanism of adsorption on KIT‐6 under different adsorption conditions is discussed. In addition, the structural stability of lysozyme molecules and the KIT‐6 adsorbent before and after adsorption were investigated by XRD, nitrogen adsorption, and FTIR spectroscopy.     

氯化锌活化对炭气凝胶微球的结构与电化学性能的影响

对炭气凝胶微球在高温下进行氯化锌活化改性,并用于制作超级电容器的电极。采用扫描电镜、N2物理吸附-脱附等对炭气凝胶微球的形貌结构进行表征,采用循环伏安、恒流充放电等测定了材料的电化学性能。结果表明,氯化锌活化有效地改善了炭气凝胶微球的孔结构,通过增加炭气凝胶微球的微孔面积和体积,提高了材料的比表面积和孔隙率。经过氯化锌活化,炭气凝胶微球的电化学性能也随之得到提高,电阻明显减小,比电容提高了2倍以上。     

Carbon Aerogels Synthesizd with Cetyltrimethyl Ammonium Bromide (CTAB) as a Catalyst and its Application for CO2 Capture

A series of carbon aerogels were synthesized by polycondensation of resorcinol and formaldehyde using cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) as a catalyst. The structure and properties of carbon aerogels were characterized by X‐ray diffraction (XRD), Raman, scanning electron microscope (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR), and N₂ adsorption‐desorption technologies. Besides, the CO₂ capture behavior of carbon aerogels was also investigated. It was found that the amount of CTAB affected the structure and morphology of carbon aerogels, thus influenced the CO₂ adsorption behavior. The sample CA‐125 (the ratio of resorcinol and CTAB is 125) had the highest CO₂ adsorption capacity (63.71 cm³ · g^–1 at 1 bar and 24.14 cm³ · g^–1 at 0.15 bar) at 25 °C. In addition, the higher CO₂ adsorption capacity was ascribed to the higher surface area, pore volume and appropriate pore size, as well as the more defects over carbon aerogels.     

Preparation and characterization of activated carbon fibers from liquefied wood

Wooden activated carbon fibers (WACFs) were prepared from phenolated Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) using CO₂ activation; microstructure characterization, the adsorption capacity, BET-specific surface area, and pore distribution of WACFs were investigated by SEM and X-ray analysis. Results showed that WACFs have a smooth surface and round or elliptical cross-section. The (002) crystal plane diffraction peak of the WACFs was obviously heightened, also showing an apparent (100) diffraction peak. With increased activation temperature, the value of d ₍₀₀₂₎ gradually decreased, whereas the values of the crystallite sizes L _a and L _c initially decreased and then increased. The L _c/d ₍₀₀₂₎ and g values corresponding to the degree of change in the graphitization structure increased. WACFs mainly have micropores as well as a few macro- and mesopores. The micropore diameter of WACFs has a narrow range (0.3–0.5 nm). With increased activation temperature, the single-point surface area, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area, micropore area, single-point total pore volume, and micropore volume of WACFs increased, while the pore diameter decreased. At 900 °C, the iodine adsorption and yield rate of WACFs were 779.22 mg/g and 51.48 %, respectively.     

Adsorption of Dyes from Aqueous Textile By-Products on Activated Carbon from Scenedesmus obliquus

The adsorption of activated carbon prepared from Scenedesmus obliquus (algae) was evaluated through adsorption of Astrazon red. The adsorption efficiency of activated carbon was determined based on the specific surface area and pore size distribution. These results were compared with the results obtained with untreated algae. Approximately a 3-fold increase in the percentage of dye removal was observed for activated carbon compared to the untreated material. The primary reason for this observation may be the increase in specific surface area and total pore volume by chemical activation from 0.0136 to 423.7001?m²?g^?1 and from 0.0012 to 0.1643?cm³?g^?1, respectively. A pseudo-second-order model was fit with the kinetic data and the results indicate chemical adsorption. The maximum adsorption capacity of activated carbon was 181.82?mg?g^?1 at 25°C according to Langmuir isotherm model.     

壳聚糖基多孔碳材料的制备及其超级电容性能

以胶态SiO₂纳米粒子为模板,壳聚糖为碳源,ZnCl₂为活化剂,制备了具有不同比表面积和孔体积的氮掺杂介孔碳。采用多种表征手段对碳材料的微观形貌、比表面积和孔道结构进行了表征,探究了壳聚糖与SiO₂纳米粒子的比例以及ZnCl₂活化剂对碳材料孔体积和比表面积的影响。结果表明,在未使用活化剂时碳材料(CSi-1.75)的孔体积高达4.53 cm³·g^-1,但其比表面积最小(729 m²·g^-1);使用ZnCl₂作为活化剂制备的碳材料(CSi-1.75-Zn)比表面积为1 032 m²·g^-1,但其孔体积下降到1.99 cm³·g^-1,且具有最多的吡啶氮和吡咯氮。在以6.0 mol·L^-1KOH为电解液的三电极体系中,当电流密度为0.5 A·g^-1时,CSi-1.75...     

Preparation of manganese dioxide loaded activated carbon adsorbents and their desulfurization performance

Manganese dioxide loaded activated carbon adsorbents (MnO₂/AC) were prepared and characterized by N₂ adsorption-desorption, BET method, X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Effects of preparation conditions and adsorption conditions on desulfurization performance of the adsorbents were studied in a fixed-bed adsorption apparatus. Experimental results show that the surface area and pore volume of MnO₂/AC decreased compared with the unmodified activated carbon, but the adsorption capacity to H₂S was improved greatly. A suitable H₂S removal activity was obtained with manganese dioxide to activated carbon ratio of 1.1: 1 and the calcination temperature of 250°C. At the adsorption temperature of 40°C and gas flow rate of 20 mL/min, the H₂S saturation capacity and H₂S removal rate reached up to 713.25 mg/g and 89.9%, respectively.     

Development and tailoring of amino-functionalized activated carbon based Cucumerupsi manni Naudin seed shells for the removal of nitrate ions from aqueous solution

The removal of nitrate ions with ethylenediamine (EDA)-functionalized activated carbon (AC-NH₂) was studied in this work. Activated carbon prepared from Cucumerupsi manni Naudin seed shells using ZnCl₂ (ACZ) was functionalized with EDA via a nitric acid oxidation followed by acyl chlorination and amidation process. The effect of pH, contact time, initial concentration and co-existing ions on the adsorption of nitrate ions have been investigated. The FTIR and elemental analysis revealed that amino groups were successfully grafted onto the ACZ after functionalization. The surface area and average pore of ACZ were found to be 1008.99 m²/g and 2.02 nm respectively. However, it was noticed that, after functionalization (AC-NH₂), its surface area decreases to 113.43 m²/g meanwhile, its pore diameter increases to 2.48 nm. The experimental results of adsorption showed that AC-NH₂ exhibit excellent nitrate ions uptake performance compared to ACZ which is attributed to the presence of the grafted amino groups on the ACZ. Nitrate adsorption follows pseudo-first-order kinetic model while the equilibrium adsorption data was best fitted the Freundlich isotherm suggesting that the adsorption process was predominated by physisorption. This study demonstrates that the prepared AC-NH₂ is a promising adsorbent for nitrate ions removal from aqueous media.     

Synergistic effect of nitrogen and molybdenum on activated carbon matrix for selective adsorptive Desulfurization: Insights into surface chemistry modification

This study reports the synthesis of mesoporous metal-modified nitrogen doped activated carbon (AC-N-Mo) from date seeds by ZnCl₂ activation and its applicability for selective adsorptive desulfurization of dibenzothiophene (DBT). The AC-N-Mo exhibits higher adsorption capacity for DBT at 100 mg-S/L with the maximum removal percentage of 99.7 % corresponding to 19.94 mg-S/g at room temperature than the unmodified carbon with 17.96 mg-S/g despite its highest surface area and pore volume of 1027 m²g^?1 and 0.55 cm³g^?1 respectively. The adsorption capacity breakthrough follows the order AC-N-Mo > AC-Mo > AC > AC-N. Also, AC-N-Mo displays excellent selectivity in the presence of aromatics (toluene, naphthalene, and 1-methylisoquinoline). The enhancement in the DBT uptake capacities of AC-N-Mo is attributed to the synergistic effect of nitrogen heteroatom that aids the dispersion of molybdenum nanoparticles on carbon surface thereby improving its surface chemistry and promising textural characteristics. The kinetic studies showed that the DBT adsorption proceeds via pseudo-second order kinetics while the isotherm revealed that Langmuir fit the data more accurately for the adsorbents. The physical properties (surface area, pore volume, particle size, etc.) and chemical properties (carbon content, etc.) of as-prepared adsorbents namely; AC, AC-N, AC-N-Mo, and AC-Mo were characterized by N₂– physisorption, X-ray Diffraction (XRD), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Scanning Electron Spectroscopy/Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM/EDS), Raman Spectroscopy (RS), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Ammonia-Temperature-Programmed Desorption (NH₃-TPD).     

Porosity control in nanoporous carbide-derived carbon by oxidation in air and carbon dioxide

Carbide-derived carbons (CDC) allow a precise control over the pore size through the selection of the carbide precursor and varying of the synthesis conditions. However, their pore volume is limited by the carbide stoichiometry. While activation of carbons derived from various organic precursors has been widely studied, this process may similarly be able to increase the pore volume and specific surface area of CDC. Oxidation of carbide-derived carbon in air and CO₂ at different temperatures and times allows for significant increase in pore volume and specific surface area as well as control over average pore size with subnanometer accuracy. The effect of activation and associated changes in the pore volume and surface area on the hydrogen uptake are also discussed.