Adsorptive Removal of Nitrate from Water Using Modified Activated Carbon Fibers

Activated carbon fiber (ACF) from cellulose based ACF (KF1500) was modified to give anion ion exchange functionality using three sequential modification methods; acetonitrile thermal chemical vapor deposition (CVD) at 800°C, heat treatment at 950°C and then steam activation at 800°C for the purpose of maximizing ion exchange capacity of nitrate (NO3 ). The maximum adsorption amount of 0.71 mmol/g was achieved, which was 1.9 times larger than non-modified original KF1500 (0.38 mmol/g) but a half the amount of ion exchange resin of HP555 (1.4 mmol/g), under the same experimental conditions.