Preparation and characterization of activated carbon from plant wastes with chemical activation

Activated carbon has been widely used in the sorption of chemical species from aqueous solutions as a versatile adsorbent with optimal sorption properties. However, production and regeneration of commercial activated carbons are still expensive and so the importance of activated carbon production by using low-cost raw materials and methods are still up to date. In this study, a one-step chemical activation process by zinc chloride was used to obtain activated carbon from plant wastes (PWs) such as pine sawdust (PS), rose seed (RS), and cornel seed (CS). The effect of activation parameters such as carbonization temperature, impregnation (ZnCl2/PW) ratio, and impregnation time on the properties of final products were investigated. The produced activated carbons were characterized by nitrogen adsorption isotherms at 77 K. The present results showed that the surface area and methylene blue index of activated carbons, which were determined by adsorption tests, were achieved as high as 1825 m(2)/g and 300 mg/g in their highest value, respectively. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.