Porosity and surface chemistry development and thermal degradation of textile waste jute during recycling as activated carbon

Textile waste jute was activated by H₃PO₄ and ZnCl₂ for reuse as activated carbon. Thermal degradation behavior of jute, impregnated jute and activating agents via thermogravimetric analysis were conducted first. Yield and iodine adsorption number were employed to determine the optimal activation conditions. As a result, activation by H₃PO₄ was best conducted at 700 °C for 90 min with an impregnation ration of 1.0 while conditions for ZnCl₂ were 500 °C, 60 min and impregnation ratio of 1.0. That is, the best activation conditions varied with activating agents. So were the properties of resultant jute-based activated carbons. H₃PO₄ activation produced an activated carbon that was mostly mesoporous while that by ZnCl₂ was more even in micropore and mesopore volumes as proven by pore volume distribution analysis. In addition, both carbons were abundant in surface functional groups which could be beneficial for adsorption of pollutants. Overall, jute could be effectively recycled to produce activated carbon that boasted excellent surface chemistry and textual properties.