Activated Carbon: A Review of Residual Precursors, Synthesis Processes, Characterization Techniques, and Applications in the Improvement of Biogas

Abstract

The energy growing demand and the international environmental policies contribute to the use of renewable energy sources. Among these sources, biogas has acquired great relevance due to its energetic similarity to fuels such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and natural gas (NG). However, biogas needs to be upgraded by removing CO2 and trace gases to obtain biomethane (>85% CH4). This review identifies and classifies seven techniques used in biogas upgrading, reported in academic and scientific publications. A 13-year review period (2008-2021) was considered. Lineal regression was used to analyze the publications number per year. Membranes use represents the largest proportion of publications (33%), while activated carbon (AC) reaches only 22%. However, the use and application of AC obtained the best trend as a publication topic, with a maximum value of R 2 = 0.7882. This review documents publish works on obtaining and applying AC in biogas enrichment processes. It includes a review of the characteristics and generation rates of various residual lignocellulosic materials used in the synthesis of AC, the synthesis processes, the characterization techniques, and the final adsorption capacities.

Investigation of the performance of activated carbon derived from ripe plantain peels for CO2 capture: Modelling and optimisation using response surface methodology

“…The 2FI model gave the highest fit to the actual data and was selected. The equation for the 2FI model generated by RSM is given as (8) Equation 8 generated by RSM shows CO 2 adsorption represented as Y while temperature and pressure are represented by X 1 and X 2 respectively. The equation 7 shows that CO 2 adsorption is affected by temperature and pressure of the CO 2 gas.…”

“…Paper is available on the website: www.idk.org.rs/journal Efforts to mitigate global warming include the exploration of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technologies. Among these, post-combustion CO 2 capture techniques, have gained prominence due to their low technological risk and retrofittable nature [7,8]. Various methods, such as adsorption, membrane processes, cryogenic distillation, and adsorption, have been suggested for CO 2 separation [6,9].…”

Assessment of carbonized himalayan chir pine biomass as an eco-friendly adsorbent for effective removal of industrial dyes

“…The process of adsorption occurs due to the van der waal forces and chemical bonding with electrostatic attractions between the activated carbon and the foreign particles 24 , 25 . Its wide range of applications includes water and air purification, cosmetics, chemicals, and pharmaceutical manufacturing 2 , 10 , 26 . All these processes work on the principle of adsorption.…”

Novel Carbonaceous Adsorbents Prepared from Glycerin Waste and Dopamine for Gas Separation

“…The last years have seen significant progress in the field of purification and separation of gaseous mixtures due to the development and use of nanoporous adsorbents such as activated carbons. These are materials with a well-developed porous structure, extensively used for the adsorption of several environmental contaminants, catalysis, and gas separation [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]. The broad application of activated carbons is due to their tunable textural properties such as surface area, pore volume, and pore size distribution.…”

“…Low-cost activated carbons may be produced from residues that have poor economic value but can obtain adsorbents with properties similar to, or even better than, those of the activated carbons currently available in the market. In general, abundant and inexpensive materials with high carbon and low inorganic content are suitable as activated carbon precursors [ 1 ]. In the past years, a very large array of nanoporous adsorbents was explored for the separation of gases.…”