In this paper, the adsorption removal characteristic for 10 species of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) was investigated using GAC and modified GAC (GAC-Cu). After modification with Cu(II), the amount of copper was to 1.93 and 4.73 mg/g for GAC and GAC-Cu, respectively. The total amount of 10 species of PFAS per specific area was obtained to 0.548 and 0.612 ng/m2 for GAC and GAC-Cu, respectively. A series of batch test confirmed lower efficiency was observed with a smaller number of carbon chain length and the removal efficiency of PFCA (perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids) was lower than that of PFSA (perfluoroalkyl sulfonic acids) with the same carbon chain length. Regarding the pH effect, the adsorption capacity was decreased with increase of pH due to the increase of electrostatic repulsion. According to pseudo first and second order (PFO and PSO) kinetic models, while the values of equilibrium uptake and time did not show significant difference, a difference in uptake was observed between 24-48h. Furthermore, based on correlation analysis, Log Kow and uptake have a high correlation with molecular weight (M.W.) and initial concentration, respectively. These results show that long-chain PFAS have higher removal efficiency due to their increased hydrophobicity.

Perfluorooctanoic acid(PFOA) was one of widely used per- and poly substances(PFAS) in the industrial field and its concentration in the surface and groundwater was found with relatively high concentration compared to other PFAS. Since various processes have been introduced to remove the PFOA, adsorption using GAC is well known as a useful and effective process in water and wastewater treatment. Surface modification for GAC was carried out using Cu and Fe to enhance the adsorption capacity and four different adsorbents, such as GAC-Cu, GAC-Fe, GAC-Cu(OH)2, GAC-Fe(OH)3 were prepared and compared with GAC. According to SEM-EDS, the increase of Cu or Fe was confirmed after surface modification and higher weight was observed for Cu and Fe hydroxide(GAC-Cu(OH)2 and GAC-Fe(OH)3, respectively). BET analysis showed that the surface modification reduced specific surface area and total pore volumes. The highest removal efficiency(71.4%) was obtained in GAC-Cu which is improved by 17.9% whereas the use of Fe showed lower removal efficiency compared to GAC. PFOA removal was decreased with increase of solution pH indicating electrostatic interaction governs at low pH and its effect was decreased when the point of zero charges(pzc) was negatively increased with an increase of pH. The enhanced removal of PFOA was clearly observed in solution pH 7, confirming the Cu in the surface of GAC plays a role on the PFOA adsorption. The maximum uptake was calculated as 257 and 345 μg/g for GAC and GAC-Cu using Langmuir isotherm. 40% and 80% of removal were accomplished within 1 h and 48 h. According to R2, only the linear pseudo-second-order(pso) kinetic model showed 0.98 whereas the others obtained less than 0.870.

Quality standards of activated carbon for gas-phase applications have been deleted from the Korean national standard list since 2007, and the iodine adsorption test is the only measure currently used for quality assurance. This study was performed to propose a suitable test method and a quality standard for gas-phase activated carbon. The "1/2 saturated vapor adsorption" test has been developed as a simple and convenient method to determine the adsorption capacity of activated carbon. In this study, the developed test method was evaluated using model VOCs including toluene, methyl ethyl ketone (MEK), and ethyl acetate (EA). A virgin activated carbon revealed adsorption capacities of 344mg/g, 322mg/g, and 328mg/g for toluene, EA, and MEK, respectively, and the adsorption capacity for a mixture of the three VOCs was 334 mg/g. When a regenerated activated carbon was applied, the adsorption capacities dramatically decreased to 62 mg/g, 52 mg/g, and 61 mg/ g for toluene, EA, and MEK, respectively. In addition, the 1/2 solvent vapor adsorption tests using 13 different specimens of activated carbon showed that their capacities were closely related to the iodine adsorption numbers, and this study suggested the adsorption capacity of 300 mg/g as a new quality standard. The novel test method and its standard may help to guarantee the quality of gas-phase activated carbon used for VOCs abatement processes.

In this study, the removal efficiency of PFCs(perfluorinated compounds) in the GAC(granule activated carbon) process based on the superheated steam automatic regeneration system was investigated in laboratory scale and pilot-scale reactor. Among PFCs, PFHxS(perfluorohexyl sulfonate) was most effectively removed. The removal efficiency of PFCs was found to be closely related to the EBCT, and the removal efficiencies of PFOA(perfluorooctanoic acid), PFOS(perfluorooctyl sulfonate), and PFHxS were 43.7, 75, and 100%, respectively, under the condition of EBCT of 6 min. Afterward, PFOA, PFOS, and PFHxS exhibited the earlier breakthrough time in the order. After that, GAC was regenerated, and the removal efficiency of the PFCs before and after regeneration was compared. As a result, it was shown that the PFCs removal efficiency in the regenerated GAC process were higher, and that of PFOA was improved to 75%. The findings of this study indicate the feasibility of the superheated steam automatic regeneration system for the stable removal of the PFCs, and it was verified that this technology can be applied stably enough even in field conditions.

The adsorption process using GAC is one of the most secured methods to remove of phosphate from solution. This study was conducted by impregnating Cu(II) to GAC(GAC-Cu) to enhance phosphate adsorption for GAC. In the preparation of GAC-Cu, increasing the concentration of Cu(II) increased the phosphate uptake, confirming the effect of Cu(II) on phosphate uptake. A pH experiment was conducted at pH 4-8 to investigate the effect of the solution pH. Decrease of phosphate removal efficiency was found with increase of pH for both adsorbents, but the reduction rate of GAC-Cu slowed, indicating electrostatic interaction and coordinating bonding were simultaneously involved in phosphate removal. The adsorption was analyzed by Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm to determine the maximum phosphate uptake(qm) and adsorption mechanism. According to correlation of determination(R2), Freundlich isotherm model showed a better fit than Langmuir isotherm model. Based on the negative values of qm, Langmuir adsorption constant(b), and the value of 1/n, phosphate adsorption was shown to be unfavorable and favorable for GAC and GAC-Cu, respectively. The attempt of the linearization of each isotherm obtained very poor R2. Batch kinetic tests verified that ~30% and ~90 phosphate adsorptions were completed within 1 h and 24 h, respectively. Pseudo second order(PSO) model showed more suitable than pseudo first order(PFO) because of higher R2. Regardless of type of kinetic model, GAC-Cu obtained higher constant of reaction(K) than GAC.

제 4 차 산업혁명이 일어남에 따라 각국의 정부와 기업들은 보다 환경친화적인 정책과 기술 개발에 힘쓰고 있다. 배기가스 배출과 소음이 거의 없는 전기차 및 수소차의 개발, 그리고 이를 보편화 하기 위한 정부의 정책 등 기존의 경제, 산업 구조를 친환경적으로 바꾸려는 시도가 많이 이루어지고 있다. 최근 여러 환경문제를 해결하기 위해 각종 유해 가스 흡착 및 폐수 처리용으로 활성탄을 많이 사용하고 있으나 흡착질의 특성에 따라 요구되는 표면 특성이 다르기 때문에 수요에 걸맞는 활성탄의 개발이 점차 요구되고 있는 실정이다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 친수성 유기물 제거에 유리한 활성탄을 개발하고자 C-O, C-O-C, C=O 및 O=C-O 등과 같은 친수성 작용기를 질산처리 방법을 통해 활성탄 표면에 효과적으로 도입하는 연구를 진행하였다. 질산을 활용하여 끓는점 및 다양한 농도 조건에서 활성탄을 환류, 개질하였고, 이를 세척 후 고온에서 탄화시켜 활성탄의 표면을 개질하였다. 제조된 개질활성탄은 활성탄의 비표면적, mesopore 및 micropore 의 함량을 알기 위하여 BET 를 이용하여 측정하였고, 4 M 120 ℃에서 개질한 결과 가장 높은 792.22 m2g-1 으로 확인되었다. 또한 제조된 활성탄의 표면 및 기공 특성 변화를 확인하기 위해 SEM, XPS, EDX, BET 등의 분석을 실시하였으며 질산 처리 정도에 따른 특성 변화에 대해 비교 고찰하였다.

The effects of activated carbon originated Ballasted Flocculant (BF) on the settleability of activated sludge and the recovery of BF by Hydro-cyclone (HC) were analyzed experimentally. Two kinds of BF (M-I: 125-250 μm, M-II: 250-425 μm in dia.) and three kinds of activated sludges with different SS concentration (2,300-7,100 mg/L) were applied for this study. With the dosage variation of BF from 0.14 to 1.3 g-BF/g-SS, we could obtain 24-31% improvement in SV30 (Sludge Volume after 30min sedimentation) for the lowest SS concentration sludge (2,300 mg/L). Whereas the SV30 improvement was much higher as 44-48% for the highest SS concentration sludge (7,100 mg/L). The settling characteristics of the sludge with BF followed Vesilind model the best among three models (Vesilind, Takacs and Cho model). HC could effectively separate BF with the separation efficiency of 70-90% and over 95% separation efficiency could be obtained when the HC was applied twice.

Numerous chemical modifications on activated carbon such as acidic conditioning, thermal treatment and metal impregnation have been investigated to enhance adsorption capacities of micropollutants in water treatment plants. In this study, chemical modification including acidic, alkaline treatment, and iron-impregnation was evaluated for adsorption of 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP). For Fe-impregnation, three concentrations of ferric chloride solutions, i.e., 0.2 M, 0.4 M, and 0.8 M, were used and ion-exchange (MIX) of iron and subsequent thermal treatment (MTH) were also applied. Surface properties of the modified carbons were analyzed by active surface area, pore volume, three-dimensional images, and chemical characteristics. The acidic and alkaline treatment changed the pore structures but yielded little improvement of adsorption capacities. As Fe concentrations were increased during impregnation, the active adsorption areas were decreased and the compositional ratios of Fe were increased. Adsorption capacities of modified ACs were evaluated using Langmuir isotherm. The MIX modification was not efficient to enhance 2,4-DCP adsorption and the MES treatment showed increases in adsorption capacities of 2,4-DCP, compared to the original activated carbon. These results implied a possibility of chemical impregnation modification for improvement of adsorption of 2,4-DCP, if a proper modification procedure is sought.

Zinc-ion hybrid supercapacitors (ZICs) have recently been spotlighted as energy storage devices due to their high energy and high power densities. However, despite these merits, ZICs face many challenges related to their cathode materials, activated carbon (AC). AC as a cathode material has restrictive electrical conductivity, which leads to low capacity and lifetime at high current densities. To overcome this demerit, a novel boron (B) doped AC is suggested herein with improved electrical conductivity thanks to B-doping effect. Especially, in order to optimize B-doped AC, amounts of precursors are regulated. The optimized B-doped AC electrode shows a good charge-transfer process and superior electrochemical performance, including high specific capacity of 157.4 mAh g−1 at current density of 0.5 A g−1, high-rate performance with 66.6 mAh g−1 at a current density of 10 A g−1, and remarkable, ultrafast cycling stability (90.7 % after 10,000 cycles at a current density of 5 A g−1). The superior energy storage performance is attributed to the B-doping effect, which leads to an excellent charge-transfer process of the AC cathode. Thus, our strategy can provide a rational design for ultrafast cycling stability of next-generation supercapacitors in the near future.

Because of their excellent stability and highly specific surface area, carbon based materials have received attention as electrode materials of electrical double-layer capacitors(EDLCs). Biomass based carbon materials have been studied for electrode materials of EDLCs; these materials have low capacitance and high-rate performance. We fabricated tofu based porous activated carbon by polymer dissolution reaction and KOH activation. The activated porous carbon(APC-15), which has an optimum condition of 15 wt%, has a high specific surface area(1,296.1 m2 g−1), an increased average pore diameter(2.3194 nm), and a high mesopore distribution(32.4 %), as well as increased surface functional groups. In addition, APC has a high specific capacitance(195 F g−1) at low current density of 0.1 A g−1 and excellent specific capacitance(164 F g−1) at high current density of 2.0 A g−1. Due to the increased specific surface area, volume ratio of mesopores, and surface functional groups, the specific capacitance and high-rate performance increased. Consequently, the tofu based activated porous carbon can be proposed as an electrode material for high-performance EDLCs.

Capacitive deionization (CDI) process is an emerging process for water desalination. Recently, there has been a major development of architectures in CDI cells using carbon flow electrodes with membrane, called flow-electrode capacitive deionization (FCDI). In FCDI, the advantage is continuous desalination due to the carbon flow electrodes. Numerous research groups dedicated to develop the FCDI process, however, a clear pre-treatment of carbon flow electrodes was not suggested. Study herein, present a clear understanding of effects of pre-treatment of activated carbon based on sonication in the carbon flow electrodes for the basics results with respect to adsorption performance.

Prussian blue is known as a superior material for selective adsorption of radioactive cesium ions; however, the separation of Prussian blue from aqueous suspension, due to particle size of around several tens of nanometers, is a hurdle that must be overcome. Therefore, this study aims to develop granule type adsorbent material containing Prussian blue in order to selectively adsorb and remove radioactive cesium in water. The surface of granular activated carbon was grafted using a covalent organic polymer (COP-19) in order to enhance Prussian blue immobilization. To maximize the degree of immobilization and minimize subsequent detachment of Prussian blue, several immobilization pathways were evaluated. As a result, the highest cesium adsorption performance was achieved when Prussian blue was synthesized in-situ without solid-liquid separation step during synthesis. The sample obtained under optimal conditions was further analyzed by scanning electron microscope-energy dispersive spectrometry, and it was confirmed that Prussian blue, which is about 9.7% of the total weight, was fixed on the surface of the activated carbon; this level of fixing represented a two-fold improvement compared to before COP-19 modification. In addition, an elution test was carried out to evaluate the stability of Prussian blue. Leaching of Prussian blue and cesium decreased by 1/2 and 1/3, respectively, compared to those levels before modification, showing increased stability due to COP-19 grafting. The Prussian blue based adsorbent material developed in this study is expected to be useful as a decontamination material to mitigate the release of radioactive materials.

실 산성 도금폐수를 입상활성탄(GAC)이 유동메디아로 첨가된 유동상 멤브레인 반응기를 이용하여 처리하였다. GAC 유동조건에서 적용 투과플럭스에 대해 시간에 따른 흡입압의 증가는 관찰되지 않았다. 폐수의 중성 pH에서 파울링 속도는 산성 조건에 비해 GAC 유동조건에서 크게 감소하였다. 해당 폐수의 용액 pH 증가는 입자크기의 증가를 가져왔고 이는 멤브레인 표면에서 상대적으로 성긴 구조의 케이크층 형성을 야기시켰다. 유동상 멤브레인 반응기에서 GAC 유동 하에 95% 이상의 COD 제거율이 관찰되었으며 총부유물질은 거의 완벽하게 제거되었다. 실 도금폐수의 pH에서, 유동상 멤브레인 반응기의 구리 및 크롬의 제거는 거의 관찰 되지 않았다. 그러나 pH를 중성으로 증가 시켰을 시 구리와 크롬의 제거율은 각각 99%와 94%까지 증가를 하였다. 적용해 준 pH에 상관 없이, 시안의 경우 95% 이상의 제거율을 달성하였다. 이는 유기물과 시안 착물 형성으로 인해 유동상 멤브레인 반응기 내 GAC의 강한 흡착으로 제거된 것으로 사료된다.

A study on the decolorization method of salt-fermented anchovy sauce using activated carbon was carried out. The anchovy sauce filtered with a diatomaceous membrane after heating at 85℃ for 20 min was reacted with 3.0% (w/w) activated carbon with pH 4.5 at 55℃ for 2 hr. The color difference value and turbidity related to the decolorizing effect showed excellent improvement results with a difference of 23% and 88%, respectively. The overall taste and color preference of decolorized anchovy sauce were significantly increased in shrimp sauce by 0.4-0.5 points (p<0.05). In order to minimize the precipitation of amino acid during storage, 1% silicon dioxide or gelatin was mixed and filtered after the activated carbon reaction. Turbidity, as index of sedimentation, was improved by 15% at 30℃ for 2 weeks. The recycle system with activated carbon coated membrane filter reduced the processing time and cost on decolorization of anchovy sauce. When the concentrated anchovy sauce was recirculated, the amount of total protein as an indicator of taste compounds was increased by 125%, which is 1.8% compared to the conventional 0.8%, indicating that it is highly useful as a liquid seasoning.

This study was carried out considering that activated carbon physically adsorbs radon. Among the air cleaners equipped with activated carbon filter, eight air cleaners sold in Korea were selected and the radon reduction rate experiment was conducted. The instrument used an ionization chamber type instrument with a sensitivity of 3 CPM. The experiment was carried out by excluding the natural rate of reduction of radon in order to accurately grasp the radon reduction rate of activated carbon filter. Of the eight air purifiers, only three showed a reduction rate of more than 30%, while the remaining five air purifiers showed a reduction rate of less than 20%. This does not seem to be much different from the natural reduction rate. In addition, since it is not adsorbed by radon alone due to the nature of activated carbon, it is expected that the reduction rate will be lower in a real life environment.

고강도, 내약품성, 무독성, 내연소성의 장점을 가지고 있는 PVdF (polyvinylidene fluoride) 나노섬유로 기공이 0.4 μm 평막을 제조한 후, 부직포와 평막으로 나권형 모듈을 제작하였다. 용존유기물의 흡착 제거를 위한 입상 활성탄(GAC, granular activated carbon) 흡착 컬럼과 자체 제작한 나권형 모듈로 혼성 수처리 공정을 구성하였다. 카올린과 휴믹산으로 조 제한 모사 용액을 대상으로, 처리수를 재순환하는 경우와 배출하는 경우 각각 GAC 충진량의 영향을 알아보았다. 여과실험 후 물 역세를 하여 회복률과 여과저항을 계산하였다. 또한, 탁도와 UV254 흡광도를 측정하여 GAC의 흡착 효과를 고찰하였 다. 그 결과, 처리수를 재순환하는 경우와 배출하는 경우 모두 탁도 처리율에는 GAC 충진량의 영향이 없었다, 하지만 GAC 의 UV254 흡광도 처리율이 처리수를 순환하는 경우 0.7~3.6%이었는데, 처리수를 배출하는 경우 3.2-5.7%로 증가하였다. 처리 수를 순환하는 경우 GAC의 충진량이 증가함에 따라, 가역적 여과저항(Rr)과 비가역적 여과저항(Rir)은 감소하는 경향을 보였 다. 그러나 총여과저항(Rt)은 거의 일정하였고, 물 역세 회복률(Rb)은 다소 증가하는 경향을 보였다.