Chemically activated carbon nanofibers for adsorptive removal of bisphenol-A:Batch adsorption and breakthrough curve study

Activated carbon nanofibers(ACNFs)with small diameter can significantly increase the accessibility of intra pores and accelerate adsorption of molecules from water.In this study,ACNFs were made by blending K_(2)CO_(3)or ZnCl_(2)as the activating agent into the polyacrylonitrile(PAN)in dimethylformamide solution for electrospinning prior to pyrolysis.Bisphenol-A(BPA),an endocrine disruption pollutant,is widely applied in the production of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins.Accordingly,BPA is often used as a model contaminant commonly removed via adsorption.Batch adsorption studies were used to evaluate the kinetics and adsorption capacity of the ACNFs.Redlich-Peterson(R-P)and Langmuir models were found to fit the isotherm of BPA adsorption better than Freundlich model,showing the homogeneous nature of the PAN originated ACNFs.The adsorption kinetics was better described by the pseudo second-order model than that by the pseudo first-order model.The fitting by intraparticle diffusion model indicates the adsorption of BPA onto ACNFs is mainly controlled by pore diffusion.High pH value and ionic strength reduced BPA adsorption from aqueous solution.The breakthrough curves studied in two different fixed bed systems(cross flow bed system and packed flow bed system)confirmed the scalability of BPA removal by ACNFs in dynamic adsorption processes.The modified dose-response model predicted well the fixed-bed outlet concentration profiles.

Preparation and Characterization of Activated Carbons from Asparagus Palm (Laccosperma robustum) Bark by Chemical Activation with H3PO4 and KOH

The present work deals with the preparation and characterization of activated carbons from the bark of the asparagus palm (Laccosperma robustum) by chemical activation with phosphoric acid and potassium hydroxide. The process was optimized on the basis of the analysis of the iodine number, methylene blue number and activated carbons yield as a function of the preparation parameters (concentration of the activating agents and the pyrolysis temperature). It emerges that the pyrolysis temperature and the concentration of activating agents influence the activated carbons preparation process. Their values were 500°C and 20% respectively for activated carbon with H3PO4 (ACP) and 700°C and 1.5% for activated carbon with KOH (ACK). The iodine numbers obtained were 850.26 mg/g for ACP and 865.49 mg/g for ACK. The methylene blue numbers obtained were 149.35 mg/g for ACP and 149.25 mg/g for ACK. The activated carbons yields obtained were 25% for ACP and 5.9% for ACK. The activated carbons prepared under optimal conditions have shown the pH of zero-point charge (pHzpc) of 4.4 and 7.0 for ACP for ACK respectively. The determination of the surface functions revealed that ACP had a strong acidic character while ACK had neutral character. The Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy also showed the presence of different functional groups on the surface of the precursor and activated carbons.

Free radicals trigger the closure of open pores in lignin-derived hard carbons toward improved sodium-storage capacity

The chemical activation of various precursors is effective for creating additional closed pores in hard carbons for sodium storage.However,the formation mechanism of closed pores under the influence of pore-forming agents is not well understood.Herein,an effective chemical activation followed by a high-temperature self-healing strategy is employed to generate interconnected closed pores in lignin-derived hard carbon(HCs).By systematic experimental design combined with electron paramagnetic res-onance spectroscopy,it can be found that the content of free radicals in the carbon matrix influences the closure of open pores at high temperatures.Excessively high activation temperature(>700 C)leads to a low free radical concentration,making it difficult to achieve self-healing of open pores at high tempera-tures.By activation at 700°C,a balance between pore making and self-healing is achieved in the final hard carbon.A large number of free radicals triggers rapid growth and aggregation of carbon microcrys-tals,blocking pre-formed open micropores and creating additional interconnected closed pores in as-obtained hard carbons.As a result,the optimized carbon anode(LK-700-1300)delivers a high reversible capacity of 330.8 mA h g^(-1) at 0.03 A g^(-1),which is an increase of 86 mA h g^(-1) compared to the pristine lignin-derived carbon anode(L-700-1300),and exhibits a good rate performance(202.1 mA h g^(-1) at 1 A g^(-1)).This work provides a universal and effective guidance for tuning closed pores of hard carbons from otherprecursors.

Preparation and Characterisation of Corncob-Based Biosorbents in Côte d’Ivoire

This study focuses on the preparation of corncob-based biosorbents. The chemical impregnation method was used to vary the chemical agent namely phosphoric acid H3PO4 (BA) and sodium hydroxide NaOH (BB). The physicochemical analysis of the two biosorbents indicated that under the same preparation conditions, the bio-sorbents have after activation yields lower than 50% (24.37% for BB and 49.09% for BA). In addition, the biosorbents have iodine index values between 444.17 mg/g and 418.79 mg/g and specific surfaces related to the adsorption of methylene blue ranging from 18.54 m2/g to 19.70 m2/g. The study of surface functional groups by using the Boehm test and pH zero point charge (pHPZC) confirmed the acidic nature of BA and BB biosorbents with respective values pHPZC = 4.01 and pHPZC = 4.90. The Langmuir method and BET analysis determined the specific surface areas by liquid phase adsorption of methylene blue as well as the porosity. The BET surface areas of BA and BB obtained are 72.01 m2/g and 63.10 m2/g respectively. The influence of the chemical activating agent on the formation of pores was confirmed by electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. From this study, it is found that the best activating agent for corn cobs was found to be phosphoric acid because the BA biosorbent was revealed to be the most favourable due to its surface area and good pore volume which are high compared to sodium hydroxide NaOH. Moreover, their application as adsorbent for effluent treatment could be explored.

Influence of KOH activation techniques on pore structure and electrochemical property of carbon electrode materials

Taking the selection of coal-tar pitch as precursor and KOH as activated agent, the activated carbon electrode material was fabricated for supercapacitor.The surface area and the pore structure of activated carbon were analyzed by Nitro adsorption method. The electrochemical properties of the activated carbons were determined using two-electrode capacitors in 6 mol/L KOH aqueous electrolytes. The influences of activated temperature and mass ratio of KOH to C on the pore structure and electrochemical property of porous activated carbon were investigated in detail. The reasons for the changes of pore structure and electrochemical performance of activated carbon prepared under different conditions were also discussed theoretically. The results indicate that the maximum specific capacitance of 240 F/g can be obtained in alkaline medium, and the surface area, the pore structure and the specific capacitance of activated carbon depend on the treatment methods; the capacitance variation of activated carbon cannot be interpreted only by the change of surface area and pore structure, the lattice order and the electrolyte wetting effect of the activated carbon should also be taken into account.

Preparation of activated carbons from mesophase pitch and their electrochemical properties

The influences of molar ratio of KOH to C and activated temperature on the pore structure and electrochemical property of porous activated carbon from mesophase pitch activated by KOH were investigated. The surface areas and the pore structures of activated carbons were analyzed by nitrogen adsorption, and the electrochemical properties of the activated carbons were studied using two-electrode capacitors in organic electrolyte. The results indicate that the maximum surface area of 3 190 m2/g is obtained at molar ratio of KOH to C of 5:1, the maximum specific capacitance of 122 F/g is attained at molar ratio of KOH to C of 4:1, and 800 ℃ is the proper temperature to obtain the maximum surface area and capacitance.

A review on novel activation strategy on carbonaceous materials with special morphology/texture for electrochemical storage

Various novel carbonaceous materials including carbon nanotubes,nano-onions,carbon microspheres,graphene nanosheets,and carbon microfibers with unique properties,such as tunable surface area and pore size,high chemical stability,cost-effective and facile preparation,have attracted enormous interest for many applications.Also essential,the activation processes play a critical role to achieve these valuable properties.In this review,we provide a thorough analysis of the emerging nano-and microscopic carbon species with special morphology/textures and currently available types of chemical activation agents,and novel activation strategy to enhance electrochemical performance of activated carbon material in electrical energy storage devices including supercapacitor and alkaline ions batteries.A particular emphasis is set on recent advance in activated carbon materials with special morphology/textures for supercapacitors and sodium ion batteries.

Effects of surface chemical properties of activated coke on selective catalytic reduction of NO with NH_3 over commercial coal-based activated coke

Surface chemical properties of typical commercial coal-based activated cokes were characterized by Xray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) and acid-base titration, and then the influence of surface chemical properties on catalytic performance of activated cokes of NO reduction with NH3 was investigated in a fixed-bed quartz micro reactor at 150 ℃. The results indicate that the selective catalytic reduction(SCR) activity of activated cokes with the increase of its surface acidic sites and oxygen content,obviously, a correlation between catalytic activity and surface acidic sites content by titration has higher linearity than catalytic activity and surface oxygen content by XPS. While basic sites content by acid-base titration have not correlation with SCR activity. It has been proposed that surface basic sites content measured by titration may not be on adjacent of acidic surface oxides and then cannot form of NO2-like species, thus the reaction of reduction of NO with NH3 have been retarded.

PREPARATION,IDENTIFICATION AND INTERFACIAL ACTIVITIES OF PETROLEUM CARBOXYLATE AS SURFACTANT FOR CHEMICAL FLOODING

Petroleum carboxylate that may be suitable for tertiary oil recovery have been produced inexpensively from the fractions of Daqing crude oil by a two step process.The feed stock was first oxidized in the vapor phase,followed by reaction of the oxidized products with sodium hydroxide.Dilute solutions of sodium carboxylates were produced and show ultralow(10^(-2)mN/m)interfacial tensions(IFTs)against a variety of hydrocarbons with a wide range of ACN(Alkane Carbon Number).Infrared spectroscopy was used to identify the functional groups in the oxidized and the saponified products.

Performance of water-based foams affected by chemical inhibitors to retard spontaneous combustion of coal

The micelle generating process of the sodium dodecyl sulfate(SDS) solution with the addition of chemical inhibitors was elucidated using phase separation model, and the descending order of the capacity for the selected chemical inhibitors to reduce the critical micelle concentrations of the solution are Mg Cl_2, Ca Cl_2,NH_4HCO_3 and NH_4Cl. The data to quantitatively describe the foam decay process, including foaming ratio,foam life and decay behaviors, was obtained by pressure measuring system. The results indicate that chemical inhibitors can improve the solution foamability. The capacity of the inhibitors to enhance the solution foamability is sorted as NH_4 Cl, NH_4HCO_3, Mg Cl2 and Ca Cl_2 which can distinctly improve the foam stability as well. The capacity of the inhibitors to enhance the SDS foam stability can be arranged as Mg Cl_2, NH_4 Cl, NH_4HCO_3 and Ca Cl_2. It is observed that the gravity drainage plays a leading role in the increase of proportion of diffusion drainage. The oxidation dynamic parameters of the coal samples treated by inhibition foams were investigated using thermal analysis technique, and their synergistic effects on inhibiting coal oxidation were explored.

Characteristics of Chemical Modified Activated Carbons from Bamboo Scaffolding

In this study, bamboo scaffolding was used to produce activated carbon by carbonization at 600 ℃ and 900 ℃with the purge of nitrogen. The 600 ℃ char was then further modified chemically by acids and alkalis by reflux for 6 hours. The produced chars were then characterized by nitrogen adsorption isotherm, He pyncometry, pH, elemental analysis and Boehm titration. For most of the chemically modified carbons, the micropore surface areas and volumes have increased compared with the 600 ~C char, while the mesopore surface areas and volumes slightly decreased, which may have been due to the dissolving of some of the permeated inorganic matter and oxidizing deposited carbon that blocks the pore openings. For the acidic modified carbons, larger amounts of acidic groups were present in the carbons after being activated by phosphoric acid, phosphoric acid furth, er treated with 2 mol-L-1nitric-acid, and calcium hydroxide. Although carbon treated with 2 mol.L-1 and 5 mol·L-1 nitric acid also produced high acidity, the surface areas and pore volumes were relatively low, due to the destruction of pores by nitric acid oxidation. The reduction of porosity may impair the adsorption capacity.

Mechanism of mechanical activation for spontaneous combustion of sulfide minerals

In order to uncover the intrinsic reasons for spontaneous combustion of sulfide minerals,representative samples were collected from typical metal mines to carry out the mechanical activation experiment.The structures and heat behaviors of activated samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy（SEM）,X-ray diffraction（XRD） analysis,and simultaneous thermal analysis（STA）.It is found that the sulfide minerals after mechanical activation show many changes with increased specific surface areas,aggregation phenomenon,decreased diffraction peak intensity,broadened diffraction peak,declined initial temperatures of heat release and self-ignition points.A new theory for explaining the spontaneous combustion of sulfide minerals is put forward：the chemical reaction activity of sulfide minerals is heightened by all kinds of mechanical forces during the mining,and the spontaneous combustion takes place finally under proper environment.

Surface and Hydrogen Sorption Characteristics of Various Activated Carbons Developed from Rat Coal Mine （Zonguldak） and Anthracite

Activated carbon samples were developed from coal samples obtained from a coal mine, rat （Zonguldak, Turkey） and anthracite （Siberia, Russia）, applying pyrolysis in a temperature range of 600-900 ℃ under N2 flow, and activation using chemical agents such as KOH, NH4Cl, ZnCl2 at 650 ℃. Nitrogen adsorption at low temperature （77 K） was used to characterize the activated carbon samples, and their pore structure properties including pore volume, pore diameter and pore size distribution were determined by means of the t-plots and DFT methods. The surface area values were higher for rat coal samples than for anthracite one, and for the rat coal samples treated with KOH ＋ NH4Cl ＋ ZnCl2 at 650 °C [Rat650（2）] there are highest surface area and total pore volume, 315.6 m2·g^-1 and 0.156 ml·g^-1, respectively. The highest value of the hydrogen sorption capacity was found as 0.71% （by mass） for the rat coal sample obtained by KOH ＋ ZnCl2 treatment at 650 °C [Rat650（1）].

Effect of Fe_2O_3 on the crystallization behavior of glass-ceramics produced from naturally cooled yellow phosphorus furnace slag

CaO–Al2O3–SiO2(CAS) glass-ceramics were prepared via a melting method using naturally cooled yellow phosphorus furnace slag as the main raw material. The effects of the addition of Fe2O3on the crystallization behavior and properties of the prepared glass-ceramics were studied by differential thermal analysis, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy. The crystallization activation energy was calculated using the modified Johnson–Mehl–Avrami equation. The results show that the intrinsic nucleating agent in the yellow phosphorus furnace slag could effectively promote the crystallization of CAS. The crystallization activation energy first increased and then decreased with increasing amount of added Fe2O3. At 4wt% of added Fe2O3, the crystallization activation energy reached a maximum of 676.374 kJ·mol−1. The type of the main crystalline phase did not change with the amount of added Fe2O3. The primary and secondary crystalline phases were identified as wollastonite (CaSiO3) and hedenbergite (CaFe(Si2O6)), respectively. © 2017, University of Science and Technology Beijing and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Characteristics of activated carbon prepared from Chinese fir sawdust by zinc chloride activation under vacuum condition

The preparation of activated carbon from Chinese fir sawdust by zinc chloride activation under both nitrogen atmosphere and vacuum conditions was carded out in a self-manufactured vacuum pyrolysis reactor. The effects of the system pressure and the activation condition （nitrogen or vacuum） on pore development were investigated. The results show that both high quality activated carbon and high added-value bio-oil can be obtained simultaneously via vacuum chemical activation. The characteristics of the activated carbons produced under vacuum conditions are better than those prepared under nitrogen atmosphere. The performance parameters of the activated carbon obtained under vacuum conditions are as follows： the pore size distribution is mainly microporous, the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller （BET） surface area is 1 070.59 m^2/g, the microporous volume is 0.502 4 cm^3/g, the average pore size is 2.085 nm, and the iodine adsorption value and the methylene blue adsorption value are 1 142.92 and 131.34 mg/g, respectively. The activated carbon from vacuum chemical activation has developed micropores, and the N2 adsorption equilibrium constant of the corresponding activated carbon gradually increases with the decrease of reaction system pressure.

CO_2 selective hydrogenation to synthetic natural gas(SNG) over four nano-sized Ni/ZrO_2 samples:ZrO_2 crystalline phase & treatment impact

Two type zirconia (monoclinic and tetragonal phase ZrO2) carriers were synthesized via hydrothermal route, and nano-sized zirconia supported nickel catalysts were prepared by incipient impregnation then followed thermal treatment at 300 °C to 500 °C, for the CO2selective hydrogenation to synthetic natural gas (SNG). The catalysts were characterized by XRD, CO2-TPD-MS, XPS, TPSR (CH4, CO2) techniques. For comparison, the catalyst NZ-W-400 (monoclinic) synthesized in water solvent exhibited a better catalytic activity than the catalyst NZ-M-400 (tetragonal) prepared in methanol solvent. The catalyst NZ-W-400 displayed more H2absorbed sites, more basic sites and a lower temperature of initial CO2activation. Then, the thermal treatment of monoclinic ZrO2supported nickel precursor was manufactured at three temperature of 350, 400, 500 °C. The TPSR experiments displayed that there were the lower temperature for CO2activation and initial conversion (185 °C) as well as the lower peak temperature of CH4generation (318 °C), for the catalyst calcined at 500 °C. This sample contained the more basic sites and the higher catalytic activity, evidenced byCO2-TPD-MS and performance measurement. As for the NZ-W-350 sample, which exhibited the less basic sites and the lower catalytic activity, its initial temperature for CO2activation and conversion was higher (214 °C) as well as the higher peak temperature of CH4formation (382 °C). © 2016 Science Press

PREPARATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF POLYMER-BASED SPHERICAL ACTIVATED CARBONS

A series of spherical activated carbons(SACs)with different pore structures were prepared from chloromethylated polydivinylbenzene by ZnCl_2 activation.The effects of activation temperature and retention time on the yield and textural properties of the resulting SACs were studied.All the SACs are generated with high yield of above 65% and exhibit relatively high mesopore fraction(me%)of 35.7%-43.6% compared with conventional activated carbons.The sample zlc28 prepared at 800℃for 2 h has the largest BET surf...

STUDY OF MICROSTRUCTURE ON PAN-ACFs PREPARED BY DIFFERENT ACTIVATION METHODS

Polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based activated carbon fibers (ACFs) are amorphous graphitic carbon, consisting of sp2 hexagonal carbon layers with different sizes of pores ranging from micropores to macropores. The microstructure, including graphite-like microcrystal, surface chemistry, pore size distributions and so on, of PAN activated carbon fibers prepared by different activation methods were investigated by element analysis (EA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and infrared spectra. The XRD patterns show that PAN-ACFs activated by different methods are of amorphous diffraction characteristic but composed of very small graphitic crystallites. The surface functional groups were analyzed by XPS and FT-IR spectra. The samples activated by potassium hydroxide posses less oxygen functional groups, and the samples activated by potassium hydroxide possess less oxygen functional groups. This is attributed to the different activation mechanisms.

Relationship between Structural Characteristics of Fly Ash and Reactivity under Autoclave Curing

The reactivity of autoclaved materials is conventionally estimated by their chemical composition. In this paper, after determining the chemical composition of various types of fly ash, a series of new tests which included X-ray Diffraction (XRD), infrared spectral analysis (IR) and bound water testing, were applied to investigate the performance of autoclaved fly ash products. The relationship between the infrared spectral analysis of Si-O wavenumber (about 1 100 cm-1) and its autoclaved chemical reactivity, and compressive strength of its autoclaved samples, is analyzed. The results show that fly ash with a lower wavenumber will have stronger autoclaved chemical reactivity and higher compressive strength for its autoclaved sample. Thus, the Si-O stretching vibration wavelength can be used to estimate autoclaved chemical reactivity of fly ash, so as to control the quality of fly ash to be autoclaved, and to predict the compressive strength of autoclaved fly ash products.

Adsorbent made from CEPT sludge in wastewater enhanced treatment

The potential application of adsorbents made from CEPT sludge in municipal wastewater treatment was investigated under various conditions, such as the adsorbent dosage, pH, and the different dosing order modes of ferric chloride and the adsorbent. The adsorbent obtained from sludge contributes to sludge disposal, while reducing the fresh ferric chloride dosage. The enhanced removal efficiencies of turbidity, UV(254), COD, total phosphorus (TP) are 90.48%,77.80%,50.62% and 96.33% respectively when 3 g/L of the sludge-adsorbent was used in the coagulation process. The maximum adsorption capacity (Q°) of the sludge-adsorbent for COD was over 184.52 mg/gand that for TP was 4.98 mg/gadsorbent optimally as the dosage of the adsorbent was 0.6 g/L. When 10 mg/L of ferric chloride and 0.6 g/L of the adsorbent were used at the first stage simultaneously, the enhanced removal efficiencies of turbidity, UV(254), COD, TP were 83.33%,52.30%,48.84% and 88.96% respectively. The pH value in the raw water played a significant role in the coagulation and adsorption process. The optimum pH value was between 4 and 11.