Preparation and characterization of super activated carbon produced from gulfweed by KOH activation

Abstract In this study, gulfweed was used as precursor material for the preparation of super activated carbon (SAC) by chemical activation method with KOH. An L16 (43) (four three-level factors) orthogonal design table was established, and the influences of the activation temperature, the activation time and the impregnation ratio on the pore structure were explored. The prepared SACs had been characterized by N2 adsorption-desorption analysis, XRD, SEM and FT-IR. When using the impregnation ratio of 4:1 at 850 °C for 120 min, the specific surface area of the prepared SACs reached the maximum value, which is 3362 m2/g. All the specific surface areas of the SACs obtained under various experimental conditions are higher than 2200 m2/g. From the analysis of the orthogonal experiment, the optimum technological conditions are as follows: the activation temperature is 800 °C, the activation time is 120 min, and the impregnation ratio is 4:1. The specific surface area of SAC was strongly influenced by the activation temperature, activation time and impregnation ratio.