Developing spherical activated carbons from polymeric resins for removal of contaminants from aqueous and organic streams

Abstract

Spherical activated carbons from polymer resin were developed with metal modifications, before/after carbonization using copper and nickel, for gradation of zeta potential (−5.01 to 8.64 mV) and high metal loading (up to 12.3%). The materials provide improved removal of various contaminants from aqueous and organic streams—removal of bacteria from water and sulfur removal from fuel. The metal-modified spherical activated carbons were highly effective for removal of both gram-negative E. coli and gram-positive S. aureus bacteria. The copper-modified spherical activated carbon could eliminate 99.9–100%, both bacterial content proving efficacy in water disinfection with a very high rate\u2009~\u20091.33\u2009×\u2009105 (CFU/ml.s). The zeta potential has significant impact with higher disinfection for high values;\u2009~\u200910–15% disinfection can be improved up to 100% for zeta potential changes from −5 to 8.6 mV. Kinetics of disinfection was studied by accounting for zeta potential in the conventional rate model, and the efficacy of both the models was compared. The fit of revised model was excellent. The spherical activated carbons can be useful for removal of slightly polar contaminants from organic streams and a high capacity of 12.8, 20 and 28 mgS/g for thiophene, benzothiophene and dibenzothiophene, respectively. The developed materials can provide useful applications in the area of environmental pollution control.