Can activated carbon be used as a desiccant?
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May I ask: Can activated carbon be used as activated carbon?
Reply to 1# Xin Gong: Activated carbon is mainly used as an adsorbent; it can certainly be used as a desiccant as well, but it’s somewhat underutilized for that purpose
There are many types of activated carbon, and each one has a different function. Molecular sieve is a type of activated carbon, and its main function is adsorption.
Desiccants commonly include silica gel, activated alumina, molecular sieves, etc. Activated carbon has a lower capacity for absorbing water compared to the aforementioned materials, and it is also more expensive, making it uneconomical to use.
Activated carbon can be used as an adsorbent, but it is generally not used as a desiccant
From a price perspective, you probably won’t choose it
The main use of activated carbon is adsorption; in terms of price and effectiveness, it is not an ideal choice as a desiccant
We have available activated carbon, which is used to adsorb coal tar from semi-water gas, and there is a large surplus of it. Only a very small amount is needed as a desiccant, and it’s troublesome to purchase it specifically, so I wanted to use it directly as a desiccant. The activated carbon is columnar with a diameter of 3 millimeters.
There are countless types of activated carbon, hundreds of them. . . . . . .
Activated carbon is mainly used as an adsorbent to absorb organic substances; as a desiccant, it is not very effective, and moreover it is difficult to regenerate. Today, most cold dryers use alumina, which facilitates regeneration.
Reply to 8# Xin Gong: It is certainly possible to use it, but the adsorption effect may not be very good. This is because different parameters of activated carbon result in significant differences depending on the application area. Based on what you’ve described, I’m not sure whether the 3MM cylindrical activated carbon used for adsorbing coal tar is made from coal; if it is, its ability to absorb moisture won’t be very strong. Even for minor drying and adsorption tasks, a large amount of this material would likely be required to achieve the desired effect. Moreover, even cylindrical activated carbon made from coal is quite expensive on the market these days. It is recommended that you purchase desiccants designed specifically for adsorption purposes, or buy activated carbon with appropriate functional properties, as this will be more cost-effective