Activated carbon was prepared from the pods of Albizia saman for the purpose of converting the waste to wealth. The pods were thoroughly washed with water to remove any dirt, air- dried and cut into sizes of 2-4 cm. The prepared pods were then carbonised in a muffle furnace at temperatures of 4000C, 5000C, 6000C ,7000C and 8000C for 30 minutes. The same procedure was repeated for 60, 90, 120 and 150 minutes respectively. Activation was done using impregnationratios of 1:12, 1:6, 1:4, 1:3, and 1:2 respectively of ZnCl2 to carbonised Albizia saman pods by weight. The activated carbon was then dried in an oven at 1050C before crushing for sieve analysis. The following properties of the produced Albizia saman pod activated carbon (ASPAC) were determined: bulk density, carbon yield, surface area and ash, volatile matter and moisture contents. The highest surface area of 1479.29 m2/g was obtained at the optimum impregnation ratio, carbonization time and temperature of 1:6, 60 minutes and 5000C respectively. It was recommended that activated carbon should be prepared from Albizia saman pod with high potential for adsorption of pollutants given the high surface area obtained.Keywords: Albizia saman pod, activated carbon, carbonization, temperature, surface area
In-situ characterization of highly reversible phase transformation by synchrotron X-ray Laue microdiffraction