Animal bones-based chars and activated carbons for xylene adsorption

Beef and pork waste bones, both original and activated, were microwave pyrolyzed to obtain chars usable as adsorbents of xylene from air. Bone activation with potassium carbonate or potassium hydroxide has been tested to increase adsorption efficiency by inducing micropore formation and increasing surface area. Composition and structure of the resulting chars were analyzed by a wide range of methods: proximate and elemental analyses, thermogravimetry, nitrogen physisorption, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. The results demonstrate that the well-developed porous structure including micropores positively affects the adsorption of xylene. Beef and pork waste bones activated with potassium carbonate were proved to be a useful input material for the preparation of cheap and sustainable adsorbents of xylene from air.