Study on Thorny Bamboo Activated Carbon for Capturing Heavy Metals in Groundwater

This study used 4~5-year-old thorny bamboo as the raw material to produce activated carbon. The effects of activation conditions on capturing the heavy metals in groundwater were discussed. In order to determine the absorption and capture properties of activated carbon, fundamental adsorption properties including charcoal yield, ash content, pH value, concentration of heavy metals, particle size, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area, and Iodine number were analyzed. The experimental results showed that when the activation temperature increased, the charcoal yield of bamboo decreased and the pH value increased. The thorny bamboo activated carbon prepared at an activation temperature of 800 °C for 1 hr exhibited a maximum iodine sorption value and BET surface area value. The results suggested that the thorny bamboo activated carbon prepared under this process condition possesses a highly adsorptive capacity.