Activated Carbons Modified by Ar and CO2 Plasmas – Acetone and Cyclohexane Adsorption

Low temperature plasma treatment is currently a scope of many research as interesting tool for enhancing surface properties of many types of materials, e.g. polymers, metals, carbon blacks. Activated carbons (AC) due to their physicochemical properties play a major role as a structural element of gas filters commonly used in respiratory protection for adsorption of many different vapors from contaminated air. It is well known that various surface function groups presented on the AC play a significant role in the hydrophobic/hydrophilic nature of them. This paper refers to the initial study of the effect of low temperature gas plasma treatment on commercially available activated carbon. To treat activated carbon by low temperature plasma, a granulated carbon was placed in a rotating test chamber. The chamber was filled with the relevant reactive gas. The effects of plasma treatment on activated carbon surface and the adsorption properties for two selected organic vapors were studied by analyzing water vapor adsorption isotherm as well as by measurement of adsorption dynamics of those vapors onto gas filter bed made of plasma treated carbons. On the basis of the obtained results it could be concluded that low temperature plasma technology may be used for improving activated carbon properties towards better adsorption of specific low temperature organic vapors. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.ms.18.2.1919