Activated Carbon Prepared from Date Pits Using Microwave Heating

Abstract

Activated carbon (AC) adsorption remains one of the most technically efficient water treatment processes. However, its high preparation cost, mainly due to energy-intensive methods, has led to research on developing efficient and cost-effective preparation methods using less expensive materials such as agricultural waste. The objective of our study was to use date pits for the preparation of AC that can be used for water treatment (Adsorption and elimination of dyes). For the activation process, a microwave radiation under steam method was employed. The AC prepared from date pits /H3PO4/carbonization 400°C using the steam-microwave radiation activation technique (radiation time: 15 minutes, power: 700W) demonstrated promising results. The adsorption tests show 80% removal rate of the reactive dye (Drimaren ROT CL-5B GR) from water. This study highlights the potential of date pits as a viable source for producing AC from bio-material. The obtained product was analysed by FTIR and MEB.