Activated Carbon Nitrogen Content

The abiotic stress affecting microbial activity and growth in an interfacial microenvironment include factors such as light, moisture, temperature, pH, soil/sediment grain size, carbon/nitrogen content, and redox potential [40-43, 46,47,49-51,56-58]. 

Thorium oxide on activated carbon was prepared by absorption of thorium nitrate from its solution in anhydrous acetone on the activated carbon Supersorbon. The excess solution was decanted, the catalyst was dried at 80 °C, and the adsorbed thorium oxide was decomposed by excess 5% ammonium hydroxide solution. After repeated washing and decanta-nation with distilled water and acetone, the catalyst was dried at 180°C. It was then stabilized by heating to 360°C for 5 hr in a stream of nitrogen. The content of thorium oxide was 2.9% (wt.). The BET surface area was 870 m2/g. Prior to kinetic measurements, the catalyst was modified by passing over acetic acid vapors (100 g acid/1 g catalyst). 

Satisfactory combustion was observed with the use of a 20 x 6 mm tubular reactor containing a dense bundle of thin oxidized copper wire. The copper wire had been pickled in advance in an aqueous solution of iron nitrate and then hardened in an air flow. The filling was recovered every other day. The optimum combustion temperature was 700°C. According to the authors [59], an active filling produces carbon dioxide and nitrogen dioxide whose peak areas are proportional to the carbon and nitrogen contents, respectively, in the sample. 

The production of glyphosate herbicide (Round-up), the world s most successful herbicide, is another example of utilization of the catalytic properties of carbon surfaces [338], The Monsanto process by which Round-up is produced uses activated carbon as an oxidation catalyst for one of the key synthesis steps. The catalyst is produced by the treatment of activated carbon with ammonia at a high temperature to impart the desired nitrogen functionality. These functionalities are also commercially important for the reduction of chloramine in potable (drinking) water. Since water utilities are increasingly using chloramine rather than chlorine for water disinfection, and standard activated carbon products are not effective for removal of residual chloramine (which, for example, is highly toxic to dialysis patients), a catalytic carbon must be used to reduce its content [339,340],... 

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