Effect of different oxidizing agent treatments on the surface properties of activated carbons Original Research Article

Two commercially available activated carbon (activated charcoal cloth (ACC) and activated granular carbon(AGC)) were oxidized with different oxidizing agents viz., HNO3, H2O2 and (NH4)2S2O8, in order to introduce surface oxygen complexes. The effect of the oxidizing agent treatment on the surface chemical nature and surface texture were characterized by ultimate elemental analysis, bulk chemical analysis, FTIR, XRD and nitrogen adsorption isotherms studies. FTIR shows carboxylic groups were essentially fixed along with ketone and ether groups after the treatment of the oxidizing agents. The HNO3 treatment affects the surface area and the porosity of the samples to a greater extent than the others. The micropore values calculated from DR and αs methods reveals that 70% of the adsorption capacity of activated carbons is due to the micropore present.