Experimental study on modified fruit shell carbon for methane adsorption and decarbonization

Modification of activated carbon has the potential to improve its adsorption and separation capacity. Different concentrations of ammonia (6%, 9%, 12%, 15%) and treatment times (4 h, 6 h, 8 h, 10 h) were used to modify jujube shell carbon and coconut shell carbon in ultrasonic washing equipment. Biogas adsorption experiments were carried out with modified activated carbon to study the effect of adsorption and decarbonization on activated carbon surface functional groups. After modification, the surface alkaline functional groups of activated carbon increased, the acidic functional groups decreased, and the adsorption performance of CO2 was enhanced. In addition, the specific surface area and total pore volume of activated carbon decreased, the average pore size increased, and the degree of graphitization increased. In the experimental research range, under ultrasonic conditions, jujube shell carbon impregnated with 12% ammonia water for 4 h and coconut shell carbon impregnated with 9% ammonia water for 10 h had the best modification effect. The adsorption capacity for CO2 was 1.83 and 1.745 mmol/g, respectively, which increased by 0.8 mmol/g and 0.599 mmol/g, respectively, compared with the unmodified sample.