Preparation of Activated Carbon from Libyan Date Seed Biomass for Water Treatment Applications

Abstract

In line with the global trend towards using environmentally friendly materials from natural sources, this work presents the manufacture of activated carbon from three different Libyan date seeds namely, Bkrari, Degla, and Hilawi. The activation process involves chemical activation by phosphoric acid followed by thermal carbonization. The functional groups of the generated activated carbon samples were evaluated using FTIR. Adsorption tests were carried out to determine their effectiveness in removing Allura Red dye from aqueous solutions. The FTIR findings indicated a high potential of date seeds as an efficient adsorbent. Batch adsorption testing revealed that all samples had good removal efficiency for Allura Red dye contaminants. The experimental results were fitted to Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models, which confirmed that adsorption took place on heterogeneous surfaces via monolayer and multilayer processes. Overall, the findings indicate that activated carbon generated from Libyan date seeds is a potential, low-cost, and sustainable material for water filtration applications, particularly in areas with high agricultural waste.