Production of activated carbons from four wastes via one-step activation and their applications in Pb2+ adsorption: Insight of ash content

Natural biomass is a renewable source for precursors of porous carbon. Four agriculture wastes of corn cob (CC), wheat bran (WB), rice husk (RH), and soybean shell (SS) were applied to produce activated carbons (ACs) via one-step activation by sodium hydroxide. The effects of ash contents and NaOH dosage ratio (1-5) on surface area for ACs were investigated. Owing to ash etching, the high ash precursor (like RH) exhibited less alkali consumption...