Activated Carbon

Hydroxy supplies activated carbon for drinking water, process water, wastewater and industrial purification applications. Available in different raw materials, particle sizes and grades, our activated carbon products are selected according to the contaminant to be adsorbed and the required treatment performance.

Activated carbon is a highly porous adsorbent used to remove or reduce chlorine, taste, odour, colour, dissolved organic compounds and selected trace contaminants from water.

It's internal pore structure provides a very large surface area for adsorption, allowing dissolved substances to attach to the carbon surface as water passes through the media. Activated carbon used for water treatment is commonly manufactured from materials such as coconut shell, coal and wood.

Hydroxy supplies activated carbon for use in activated carbon filters, drinking-water systems, RO pretreatment, process-water purification, wastewater polishing and water-reuse applications.

Why Activated Carbon?

Activated carbon provides an effective adsorption stage where conventional mechanical filtration alone cannot remove dissolved contaminants. Typical water-treatment applications include:

Free Chlorine Reduction
Taste & Odour Control
Colour Reduction
Dissolved Organic Contaminant Adsorption
Organic Matter Reduction
Drinking-Water Purification
Process-Water Polishing
RO Membrane Pretreatment
Wastewater & Reuse-Water Polishing

Coconut-shell activated carbon is widely used in water treatment because of its high hardness, high purity and well-developed microporous structure. Coal-based grades are also widely used where broader pore distribution is required for treatment of dissolved organic compounds.

Key Selection Parameters

Activated carbon should be selected according to the water quality and target contaminant, rather than only by carbon type. Typical specification parameters include:

Raw Material
Carbon Form
Particle / Mesh Size
Iodine Number
Apparent Density
Moisture Content
Ash Content
Hardness / Abrasion Resistance
Surface Area
Pore-Size Distribution
pH
Target Contaminant
Required Contact Time

Commercial water-treatment activated carbons are supplied in different effective particle sizes and adsorption capacities depending on application. For example, Calgon Carbon publishes grades with different iodine numbers, effective sizes and uniformity coefficients for drinking water, groundwater, wastewater and reuse applications.

Products

Coconut Shell Granular Activated Carbon

High-purity carbon for drinking-water and purification applications.

Coconut-shell GAC provides a highly developed microporous structure and strong mechanical hardness, making it suitable for adsorption of chlorine, taste, odour and selected dissolved organic contaminants.

Typical Applications:

Drinking water, RO pretreatment, bottled water, commercial filtration and process-water purification.

Coal-Based Granular Activated Carbon

Versatile adsorption media for water and wastewater treatment.

Coal-based activated carbon offers a broader pore structure and is suitable for adsorption of a wide range of dissolved organic substances.

Typical Applications:

Municipal water treatment, industrial process water, wastewater polishing, water reuse and general purification.

Powdered Activated Carbon — PAC

Fine activated carbon for rapid adsorption and batch treatment.

PAC consists of finely divided carbon particles that can be dosed directly into water for rapid adsorption and subsequently removed through clarification or filtration.

Typical Applications:

Taste and odour treatment, colour reduction, organic-contaminant control and temporary or variable treatment requirements.

Catalytic Activated Carbon

Enhanced carbon media for specialised treatment applications.

Catalytic activated carbon provides adsorption together with enhanced catalytic activity for selected contaminants that may require more than conventional carbon adsorption.

Typical Applications:

Chloramine reduction, selected oxidation-related applications and specialised water purification.

High-Purity Activated Carbon

Selected carbon for demanding process-water applications.

High-purity activated carbon is designed for applications where low impurities, controlled performance and consistent adsorption characteristics are important.

Typical Applications:

Food & beverage water, pharmaceutical process water, high-purity water pretreatment and specialised industrial purification.

Activated Carbon for Wastewater & Water Reuse

Adsorption media for final organic polishing.

Selected activated carbon grades can be used as a polishing stage for reducing residual dissolved organics, colour, odour and selected contaminants from treated wastewater.

Typical Applications:

Industrial wastewater, tertiary polishing, recycled water and reuse-water treatment. Kuraray lists both coconut-shell and coal-based grades for drinking-water purification, industrial-water chlorine removal, wastewater organic removal, colour control and food-and-beverage applications.