Characterization of ball-milled bamboo-based activated carbon treated with KMnO4 and KOH as activating agents

Bamboo-based activated carbon was made using the activating agents KOH and KMnO4 at high temperature. This study examined the ability of unmilled and ball-milled bamboo activated using KOH or KMnO4 to fulfil the activated carbon standard parameters. Chemical activation was done using KOH and KMnO4 at 2.5% and 5% concentration, heated at 800 °C, and steamed for 1 hour. Sample size was reduced to 500 nm using high energy ball-milling at 500 rpm for 80, 150, or 180 min. Analysis included the yield, water content, ash content, volatile matter content, burn-off weight percentage, morphology analysis, functional groups (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, FTIR), crystallinity analysis (X-ray diffraction, XRD), and Brunauer, Emmett, and Teller (BET) analysis. Ball-milling treatment for 150 min produced activated carbon of 449 nm in size and a particle distribution index (PDI) score of 0.66. Ball milled activated carbon from the experiment had a pore radius ranging from 1.18 to 2.49 nm. The activated carbon that met the criteria of ANSI/AWWA B604-12 (2012) standard for moisture content, iodine number, and JIS K 1474 (1967) standard for methylene blue adsorption level and surface area were milled activated carbon with activator KMnO4 2.5%.