activated carbon molecules structure To systematically evaluate pore structure and surface chemistry effects, a matrix of activated carbon fibers (ACFs) with three activation levels and four surface chemistry levels was prepared and characterized. In addition, three granular activated carbons (GACs) were studied. Two common drinking water contaminants, relatively polar methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE) and relatively nonpolar trichloroethene (TCE), served as adsorbate probes. TCE adsorbed primarily in micropores in the 7–10 Å width range while MTBE adsorbed primarily in micropores in the 8–11 Å width range. These results suggest that effective adsorbents should exhibit a large volume of micropores with widths that are about 1.3 to 1.8 times larger than the kinetic diameter of the target adsorbate. Hydrophobic adsorbents more effectively removed both TCE and MTBE from aqueous solution than hydrophilic adsorbents, a result that was explained by enhanced water adsorption on hydrophilic surfaces. To assure sufficient adsorbent hydrophobicity, the oxygen and nitrogen contents of activated carbon should therefore sum to no more than about 2 to 3 mmol/g. |activated carbon in Vadodara | |activated carbon in RAJASTHAN | |activated carbon in PUNJAB | |activated carbon in GUJARAT | |activated carbon in NAGPUR| |activated carbon in BIHAR | |activated carbon in RATLAM|