Sunday, November 24, 2019

ACTIVATED CARBON - Activated Charcoal and How It Works - Activated charcoal is carbon that has been treated with oxygen. The treatment results in highly porous charcoal. These tiny holes give the charcoal a surface area of 300-2,000 m2/g, allowing liquids or gases to pass through the charcoal and interact with the exposed carbon. The carbon adsorbs a wide range of impurities and contaminants, including chlorine, odors, and pigments. Other substances, like sodium, fluoride, and nitrates, are not as attracted to the carbon and are not filtered out. Since adsorption works by chemically binding the impurities to the carbon, the active sites in the charcoal eventually become filled. Activated charcoal filters become less effective with use and have to be recharged or replaced.

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Activated Carbon
Activated Charcoal and How It Works
by Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D. 





Activated charcoal (also known as activated carbon) consists of small, black beads or a solid black porous sponge.
It is used in water filters, medicines that selectively remove toxins, and chemical purification processes.
Activated charcoal is carbon that has been treated with oxygen. The treatment results in highly porous charcoal.
These tiny holes give the charcoal a surface area of 300-2,000 m2/g, allowing liquids or gases to pass through the charcoal and interact with the exposed carbon.
The carbon adsorbs a wide range of impurities and contaminants, including chlorine, odors, and pigments.
Other substances, like sodium, fluoride, and nitrates, are not as attracted to the carbon and are not filtered out.
Since adsorption works by chemically binding the impurities to the carbon, the active sites in the charcoal eventually become filled.
Activated charcoal filters become less effective with use and have to be recharged or replaced.
What Activated Charcoal Will and Won't Filter
The most common everyday use of activated charcoal is to filter water.
It improves water clarity, diminishes unpleasant odors, and removes chlorine.
It's not effective for removing certain toxic organic compounds, significant levels of metals, fluoride, or pathogens.
Despite persistent urban legend, activated charcoal only weakly adsorbs alcohol and it not an effective means of removal.
It will filter:
·               Chlorine
·               Chloramine
·               Tannins
·               Phenol
·              Some drugs
·              Hydrogen sulfide and some other volatile compounds that cause odors
·             Small amounts of metals, such as iron, mercury, and chelated copper
It won't remove:
·              Ammonia
·              Nitrates
·              Nitrites
·              Fluoride
·              Sodium and most other cations
·              Significant amounts of heavy metals, iron, or  copper
·              Significant amounts of hydrocarbons or petroleum distillates
·             Bacteria, protozoa, viruses, and other microorganisms
Activated Charcoal Effectiveness
Several factors influence the effectiveness of activated charcoal. The pore size and distribution vary depending on the source of the carbon and the manufacturing process.
Large organic molecules are absorbed better than smaller ones. Adsorption tends to increase as pH and temperature decrease.
Contaminants are also removed more effectively if they are in contact with the activated charcoal for a longer time, so flow rate through the charcoal affects filtration.
Activated Charcoal De-Adsorption
Some people worry that activated charcoal will de-adsorb when the pores become full.
While the contaminants on a full filter aren't released back into the gas or water, used activated charcoal is not effective for further filtration.
It is true that some compounds associated with certain types of activated charcoal may leach into the water. For example, some charcoal used in an aquarium might start to release phosphates into the water over time. Phosphate-free products are available.
Recharging Activated Charcoal
Whether or not you can or should recharge activated charcoal depends on its purpose.
It's possible to extend the life of an activated charcoal sponge by cutting or sanding off the outer surface to expose the interior, which might not have fully lost its ability to filter media.
Also, you can heat activated charcoal beads to 200 C for 30 minutes. This will degrade the organic matter in the charcoal, which can then be rinsed away, but it won't remove heavy metals.
For this reason, it's generally best to just replace the charcoal.
You can't always heat a soft material that has been coated with activated charcoal because it might melt or release toxic chemicals of its own, basically contaminating the liquid or gas you want to purify.
The bottom line here is that you possibly could extend the life of activated charcoal for an aquarium, but it's inadvisable to try to recharge a filter used for drinking water.

Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D.
Introduction
Ph.D. in biomedical sciences from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville - Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Science educator with experience teaching chemistry, biology, astronomy, and physics at the high school, college, and graduate levels.
ThoughtCo and About Education chemistry expert since 2001.
Widely-published graphic artist, responsible for printable periodic tables and other illustrations used in science.
Experience
Anne Helmenstine, Ph.D. has covered chemistry for ThoughtCo and About Education since 2001, and other sciences since 2013. She taught chemistry, biology, astronomy, and physics at the high school, college, and graduate levels. She has worked as a research scientist and also abstracting and indexing diverse scientific literature for the Department of Energy.
In addition to her work as a science writer, Dr. Helmenstine currently serves as a scientific consultant, specializing in problems requiring an interdisciplinary approach. Previously, she worked as a research scientist and college professor. 
Education
Dr. Helmenstine holds a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and a B.A. in physics and mathematics with a minor in chemistry from Hastings College. In her doctoral work, Dr. Helmenstine developed ultra-sensitive chemical detection and medical diagnostic tests.
ThoughtCo and Dotdash
ThoughtCo is a premier reference site focusing on expert-created education content. We are one of the top-10 information sites in the world as rated by comScore, a leading Internet measurement company. Every month, more than 13 million readers seek answers to their questions on ThoughtCo.
For more than 20 years, Dotdash brands have been helping people find answers, solve problems, and get inspired. We are one of the top-20 largest content publishers on the Internet according to comScore, and reach more than 30% of the U.S. population monthly. Our brands collectively have won more than 20 industry awards in the last year alone, and recently Dotdash was named Publisher of the Year by Digiday, a leading industry publication.

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