Activation Mechanism, Surface Properties and Adsorption Characteristics of KOH Activated High Surface Area Carbon

Abstract

High-surface-area (over 3000 m2/g) active carbon was developed from the mixture of petroleum coke and excess amount of potassium hydroxide. Thermogravimetric measurement with effluent gas analysis indicated that this activation proceeded with the transformation of KOH to K2CO3. A considerable number (0.9–1.6 meq/g) of surface functional groups were found compared to that of existing steam activated carbons (0.1–0.2 meq/g). Although the equilibrium adsorption amount of tested organic compounds in the vapor phase was not influenced by these surface functional groups, adsorption of CHCl3 in liquid phase and electric double layer capacitance were considerably influenced.