How is Calgon Carbons coal-based activated carbon produced?
The coal is pulverized to a very fine particle, about the size of talcum powder. The powdered coal is mixed with a binder to “glue” it back together and pressed into briquettes. These in turn are crushed and classified to the size of the desired end product. This process, called reagglomeration, creates an activated carbon that is harder and less dusty than a direct activation process. Reagglomeration also assures that the activation occurs through the granule to the core. Some direct activation processes only activate the exterior of the granule. The sized material is heated in an oxygen void environment to avoid burning and to remove the volatile components of the coal. The carbon is activated by additional heating in a controlled environment of oxygen and steam. The activation process creates a highly porous graphitic plate structure with tremendous surface area.
