Carbon structure and porosity of carbonaceous adsorbents in relation to their adsorption properties Original Research Article

A number of carbonaceous adsorbents were prepared by carbonisation at 600°C following acidic oxidation under various conditions. Effects of the chemical nature of the precursor, such as the ratio of aromatic to aliphatic carbons and oxygen content, on the chemical and structural characteristics of the resultant chars were investigated using 13C NMR and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. The 13C NMR spectral parameters of the coal samples show that as the severity of oxidation conditions increased, the ratio of aromatic to aliphatic carbons increased. Furthermore, it was also found that the amount of disorganised carbon affects both the pore structure and the adsorption properties of carbonaceous adsorbents. It is demonstrated that higher amount of the disorganised carbon indicates smaller micropore size.