Preparation and characterization of acidic, basic and hydrophobic dehydrated carbons and their capability for methylene blue adsorption

Abstract EN

Dehydrated carbon (DC) was prepared from date palm leaflets via sulfuric acid treatment.

DC was functionalized via amide coupling using ethylene diamine (EDA) and propylene diamine (PDA) to produce basic dehydrated carbons (BDCs): BDC-EDA and BDC-PDA, respectively, and using ethylamine (EA) and aniline (AN) to produce hydrophobic dehydrated carbons (HDCs): HDC-EA and HDC-AN, respectively.

Surface areas were found low, between 6.7-16 m2/g with mesoporosity domination.

FTIR shows that –COOH content on DC almost disappeared after surface functionalization.

Faster adsorption of methylene blue with larger adsorption capacity was found on HDC-EA than other adsorbents because of stronger hydrophobic interaction forces.