Chemical and physical activation of olive-mill waste water to produce activated carbons

Olive-mill waste water is produced in large quantities during the manufacture process of the olive oil in mills. This by-product has been used as raw material to produce activated carbons by both chemical and physical activation methods. In the first case, KOH and H3PO4 were used as activating agent, and in the second case, CO2 at 840 degreesC for different periods of time. Results obtained indicate that the chemical activation with KOH at 800 degreesC, in an inert atmosphere, yielded activated carbons with the highest surface area and more developed micro, meso and macroporosity. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.