Causes and Prevention Measures of Activated Carbon Rusting
Activated carbon itself is an inert carbon-containing material and will not rust directly. However, in practical use, its surface is prone to rust-like phenomena due to attached impurities, which affects its adsorption performance and service life. Such phenomena mostly occur in water treatment, humid working conditions and other scenarios, so it is necessary to focus on prevention and control.
There are two main core causes of activated carbon rusting: first, metal impurities such as iron and copper are mixed in the raw materials or production process. In a humid and oxygen-rich environment, the metal impurities undergo oxidation reactions, forming rust products attached to the surface of activated carbon; second, there are acids, alkalis and salts in the service environment, which accelerate the corrosion of metal impurities.
At the same time, the humid environment will make the rust products spread and block the pores of activated carbon. Prevention and control measures should run through the whole service process: select high-quality activated carbon with high purity and few impurities, and strictly remove metal impurities during production; avoid long-term exposure to humid and strong acid-alkali environments during use, and check the working conditions regularly.