Chemical Properties and Breakthrough Adsorption Study of Activated Carbon Derived from Carbon Precursor from Carbide Industry

Nursyuhani Che Husain; Nurul Athirah Zawawi; Fazlena Hamzah; Miradatul Najwa  Mohd Rodhi; Harumi Veny; Dessy Ariyanti; Nur Athikah Mohidem

Nursyuhani Che Husain Biocatalysis and Biobased Material Technology Research Group, School of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA, UiTM Shah Alam, Malaysia
Nurul Athirah Zawawi Biocatalysis and Biobased Material Technology Research Group, School of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA, UiTM Shah Alam, Malaysia
Fazlena Hamzah Biocatalysis and Biobased Material Technology Research Group, School of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA, UiTM Shah Alam, Malaysia
Miradatul Najwa Mohd Rodhi Biocatalysis and Biobased Material Technology Research Group, School of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA, UiTM Shah Alam, Malaysia
Harumi Veny Biocatalysis and Biobased Material Technology Research Group, School of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA, UiTM Shah Alam, Malaysia
Dessy Ariyanti Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Diponegoro, Tembalang, Semarang, Indonesia
Nur Athikah Mohidem Department of Biological and Agricultural, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia

Keywords: Activated Carbon, Carbide, Chemical Activation, CO2 Capture, Impregnation

Abstract

The residual carbon from the carbide industry in Malaysia has been explored as a precursor in activated carbon (ACs) processing via chemical activation with potassium hydroxide (KOH). The residual carbon from the carbide industry consists of high fixed carbon content and is a sustainable source of raw material, making it a promising precursor for ACs processing. However, the synergy between activation temperature with impregnation ratio has yet to be well explored for precursors from carbide processing. Thus, in the present work, impregnation ratios from 1:1 to 1:5 and temperature for the activation process from 300°C to 700°C were examined in the ACs processing. The impact of these factors was evaluated towards the chemical characteristic of the derived ACs, such as pores and surface morphology, functional groups, and thermal profile. The finding indicated that the ratio of as-received carbon /KOH from 1:1 to 1:5 provided ACs with BET surface areas of 130 – 458 m² /g and micropores content of 19 – 25.75%. The results suggested that the highest BET surface area in this range of study was 458.15 m² /g at an activation temperature of 700^oC and an impregnation ratio of 1:1. Then the developed ACs were further evaluated in carbon dioxide (CO₂) adsorption using breakthrough CO₂ adsorption. The breakthrough time and CO₂ adsorption rate capacity were calculated as 70 s and 0.175 mmol/g, respectively. This finding indicated that as-received carbon precursors from the carbide industry could be explored as one of the potential materials in ACs development, forming the microporous structure during KOH activation and encouraging the binding of CO₂ molecules in CO₂ capture.

References

Acevedo, S., Giraldo, L., Moreno-Piraján, J. C., 2020. ‘’Adsorption of CO2 on activated carbons prepared by chemical activation with cupric nitrate.’’ ACS Omega, 5, 10423–10432.

Cai, Y., Liu, D., Pan, Z., Yao, Y., Li, J., Qiu, Y., 2013. “Pore structure and its impact on CH4 adsorption capacity and flow capability of bituminous and subbituminous coals from Northeast China.” Fuel, 103, 258-268.

Chowdhury, Z. Z., Zain, S. M., Rashid, A. K., Rafique, R. F., Khalid, K., 2013. “Breakthrough curve analysis for column dynamics sorption of Mn(II) ions from wastewater by using Mangostana garcinia peel-based granular-activated carbon.” Journal of Chemistry, 2013, 1-8.

Dizbay-Onat, M., Vaidya, U. K., Lungu, C. T., 2017. ‘’Preparation of industrial sisal fiber waste derived activated carbon by chemical activation and effects of carbonization parameters on surface characteristics.’ Industrial Crops and Products, 95, 583–590.

García, S., Gil, M. V., Martín, C. F., Pis, J. J., Rubiera, F., Pevida, C., 2011. “Breakthrough adsorption study of a commercial activated carbon for pre-combustion CO2 capture,’’ Chemical Engineering Journal, 171, 549–556.

Hazimah, M., Wan Azlina, W. A. K. G., Thomas, C. S. Y., 2018. ‘’Carbon dioxide adsorption on activated carbon hydrothermally treated and impregnated with metal oxides.’’ Jurnal Kejuruteraan, 30, 31–38.

Huang, P. H., Cheng, H. H., Lin, S. H., 2015. ‘’Adsorption of carbon dioxide onto activated carbon prepared from coconut shells.’’ Journal of Chemistry, 106590, 1-10.

Hussin, F., Aroua, M. K., Roziki, M. Z. A., Yusoff, R., 2020. ‘’Carbon dioxide adsorption using biomass-based activated carbon functionalized with deep eutectic solvents.’ IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 778, 012169.

Ilomuanya, M., Nashiru, B., Ifudu, N., & Igwilo, C., 2017. ‘’Effect of pore size and morphology of activated charcoal prepared from midribs of Elaeis guineensis on adsorption of poisons using metronidazole and Escherichia coli O157:H7 as a case study.” Journal of Microscopy and Ultrastructure, 5, 32-38.

Jatinder, K. R., Manjeet, K., Bharadwaj, A., 2019. ‘’Synthesis of activated carbon from agricultural waste using a simple method: Characterization, parametric and isotherms study.“ Materials Today: Proceedings, 5, 3334 - 3345.

Joshi, S., Pokharel, B. P., 2014. ‘’Preparation and characterization of activated carbon from Lapsi (Choerospondias axillaris) seed stone by chemical activation with potassium hydroxide.“ Journal of the Institute of Engineering, 9, 79–88.

Khalili, N. R., Campbell, M., Sandi, G., Goals, J., 2000. ‘’Production of micro- and mesoporous activated carbon from paper mill sludge: I. Effect of zinc chloride activation.“ Carbon, 38,1905 – 1915.

Krahnstöver, T., Plattner, J., Wintgens, T., 2016. ‘’Quantitative detection of powdered activated carbon in wastewater treatment plant effluent by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA).“ Water Research, 101, 510–518.

Melliti, A., Srivastava, V., Kheriji, J., Sillanpää, M., Hamrouni, B., 2021. ‘’Date Palm Fiber as a novel precursor for porous activated carbon: Optimization, characterization and its application as Tylosin antibiotic scavenger from aqueous solution.“ Surfaces and Interfaces, 24, 101027.

Momoh, E. O., Osofero, A. I., Felipe, A. M., Hamzah, F., 2020. ‘’Physico-mechanical behaviour of oil palm broom fibres (OPBF) as eco-friendly building material.“ Journal of Building Engineering, 30, 101208.

Nahil, M. A., Williams, P. T., 2012. ‘’Pore characteristics of activated carbons from the phosphoric acid chemical activation of cotton stalks.“ Biomass Bioenergy, 37,142–149.

Nassima, B., Sandrine, D-O., Lamia, K., Farouk, B., Farida, A-B., Mickaël, G., 2017. ‘’Single and mixture adsorption of clofibric acid, tetracycline and paracetamol onto activated carbon developed from cotton cloth residue.“ Process Safety and Environmental Protection, 111, 544-559.

Pallarés, J., González-Cencerrado, A., Arauzo, I., 2018. ‘’Production and characterization of activated carbon from barley straw by physical activation with carbon dioxide and steam.“ Biomass and Bioenergy, 115, 64–73.

Prahas, D., Kartika, Y., Indraswati, N., Ismadji, S., 2008. ‘’Activated carbon from jackfruit peel waste by H3PO4 chemical activation: Pore structure and surface chemistry Characterization.” Chemical Engineering Journal, 140, 32–42.

Qi, L. L., Tang, X., Wang, Z. F., Peng, X. S., 2017. ‘’Pore characterization of different types of coal from coal and gas outburst disaster sites using low temperature nitrogen adsorption approach.“ International Journal of Mining Science and Technology, 27, 371-377.

Ramonna, I. K., Athanasios, C. M., George, Z. K., 2019. ‘’Synthesis of activated carbon from food waste.“ Environmental Chemistry Letters, 17, 429 – 438.

Rodríguez Arana, J. M. R., Mazzoco, R. R., 2010. ‘’Adsorption studies of methylene blue and phenol onto black stone cherries prepared by chemical activation.“ Journal of Hazardous Materials, 180, 656–661.

Saka, C., 2012. ‘’BET, TG-DTG, FT-IR, SEM, iodine number analysis and preparation of activated carbon from acorn shell by chemical activation with ZnCl2.“ Journal of Analytical and Applied Pyrolysis, 95, 21–24.

Serna-Guerrero, R., Sayari, A., 2010. ‘’ Modeling adsorption of CO2 on amine-functionalized mesoporous silica. 2: Kinetics and breakthrough curves.“ Chemical Engineering Journal, 161, 182–190.

Seyyedeh, M. K., Mohsen, S., Mojtaba, J., Tobias, R., Anita, P., Nourollah, M., 2021. ‘’Pretreatment of lignocellulosic waste as a precursor for synthesis of high porous activated carbon and its application for Pb (II) and Cr (VI) adsorption from aqueous solutions.“ International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 180, 299-310.

Seyyedeh, M. K., Nourollah, M., Mohammad, M. D., Mohsen, S., 2020. ‘’A novel post-modification of powdered activated carbon prepared from lignocellulosic waste through thermal tension treatment to enhance the porosity and heavy metals adsorption.“ Powder Technology, 366, 358 – 368.

Stavropoulos, G. G., Zabaniotou, A. A., 2005. ‘’Production and characterization of activated carbons from olive-seed waste residue.“ Microporous and Mesoporous Materials, 82, 79–85.

Sych, N. V., Trofymenko, S. I., Poddubnaya, O. I., Tsyba, M. M., Sapsay, V. I., Klymchuk, D. O., Puziy, A. M., 2012. ‘’Porous structure and surface chemistry of phosphoric acid activated carbon from corncob.“ Applied Surface Science, 261,75–82.

Tan, I. A. W., Ahmad, A. L., Hameed, B. H., 2008. Adsorption of basic dye using activated carbon prepared from oil palm shell: batch and fixed bed studies.“ Desalination, 225, 13–28.

Tang, X., Wang, Z., Ripepi, N., Kang, B., Yue, G., 2015. ‘’Adsorption affinity of different types of coal: mean isosteric heat of adsorption’’ Energy Fuels, 29, 3609-3615.

Wang, K., Li, C., San, H., Do, D. D., 2007. ‘’The importance of finite adsorption kinetics in the sorption of hydrocarbon gases onto a nutshell-derived activated carbon.“ Chem. Eng. Sci., 62, 6836– 6842.

Zulkurnai, N. Z., Mohammad Ali, U. F., Ibrahim, N., Abdul Manan, N. S., 2017. ‘’Carbon dioxide (CO2) adsorption by activated carbon functionalized with deep eutectic solvent (DES).“ IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 206, 012001.