Activated carbon is widely used for a lot of water & air filtration usages as it will take out a wide variety of impurities. Activated carbon is utilised mainly in commercial industries
Organic, Inorganic Impurities
Activated carbon is being used to eradicate organic impurities and several inorganic contaminants. It generally is a non-specific adsorbent.
Activated carbon can easily adsorb nearly all organic compounds to some extent. The efficiency of activated carbon is related to the chemical composition, molecular structure, and which carbon is being utilised. Activated carbon can be made from coal, coconut shell, wood, bone and also peat. The division of pores (macropores, transitional pores and also micropores) is different for each product. It’s an excellent adsorbent due to its large surface area and also the fact that the diverse surfaces can easily take on a variety of types of pollutants. The surface area of a carbon is created by activating the base product in a means to create pores. The performance from the carbon plus which carbon provides best results is based on the particular site as well as the pollutants being extracted.
For most water treatment functions the activated carbon is likely to utilise physical adsorption of the contaminants. Physical adsorption relates to impurities held on the surface area through weak forces. Activated carbon will be able to additionally implement chemical adsorption if the forces are powerful as well as arise at active sites on the actual surface.
Limits
Activated carbon has restrictions. Materials that have low molecular weight and also higher purity may be generally not suited to activated carbon. One example is, water streams with higher solids, oil as well as grease can lead to fouling of the activated carbon filter.
Another restriction is the activated carbon can become depleated after awhile & new carbon has to be exchanged with the old. The used up carbon must then be removed in a proper manner. The advantage is that the activated carbon can be reactivated or discharged. In most cases the spent carbon isn’t hazardous; however, if you are unsure it’s always best to have it analysed.
Because of to activated carbon’s ability to be effective for a wide variety of pollutants, it’s at times employed for programs in which another type of filter media or system may be more appropriate.
Conclusion
Activated carbon serves as a established technology which has been around for several years. It is made use of in numerous types of programs and currently is supplied in various forms. When looking at a specific application through which several organic pollutants may require to be filtered, it could be practical to think about activated carbon filtration.