Liquid-Phase Adsorption of Organic Compounds by Granular Activated Carbon and Activated Carbon Fibers

Abstract

Liquid-phase adsorption of organic compounds by granular activated carbon (GAC) and activated carbon fibers (ACFs) is investigated. Acetone, isopropyl alcohol (IPA), phenol, and tetrahydrofuran (THF) were employed as the model compounds for the present study. It is observed from the experimental results that adsorption of organic compounds by GAC and ACF is influenced by the BET (Brunauer-Emmett-Teller) surface area of adsorbent and the molecular weight, polarity, and solubility of the adsorbate. The adsorption characteristics of GAC and ACFs were found to differ rather significantly. In terms of the adsorption capacity of organic compounds, the time to reach equilibrium adsorption, and the time for complete desorption, ACFs have been observed to be considerably better than GAC. For the organic compounds tested here, the GAC adsorptions were shown to be represented well by the Langmuir isotherm while the ACF adsorption could be adequately described by the Langmuir or the Freundlich isotherm. Column adsorption tests indicated that the exhausted ACFs can be effectively regenerated by static in situ thermal desorption at 150 C, but the same regeneration conditions do not do as well for the exhausted GAC.