Carbon treatment, purification

Food-grade specifications requite further purification in the form of carbon treatments and recrysta11i2ation from aqueous or other solvent systems. The illustrated flow scheme for sorbic acid production in Figure 1 has been greatly simplified. 

Many chromatographic methods such as permeation chromatography, column chromatography, and size exclusion chromatography have been used to purify CNTs. The size exclusion chromatography (SEC) is the only carbon nanotube purification method in the literature that is not subjected to the acid treatments which tend to create the carboxylic functionality on CNTs. 

For the purification of the membranes, the common treatment with 0.1-2.0 N aqueous sodium/potassium hydroxide solutions has been compared with the purification of raw BC membranes using aqueous sodium/ potassium carbonate. Whereas hydroxide purification leads to a decrease of the tensile strength and an elongation of the material this effect is lower in the case of carbonate treatment. Moreover, the oxygen transmission rate is higher after carbonate washing. 

Besides its direct use in the final product, water is used in breweries as a utility, for purposes such as cleaning, steam generation, etc. Another common utility in breweries are gases, such as air and carbon dioxide, which sometimes might contain impurities that need to be removed in order to ensure the quality and uniformity of the hnal product. Besides traditional methods, i.e., activated coal treatment, purification of utihties can also be successfully done by membrane filtration. Some membrane manufacturers (i.e., Pall Corporation, Donaldson Ultrafilter Inc., Sartorius, Millipore, CPM, etc.) offer commercial membrane separation equipment that is specihcaUy designed for the purification of water, steam, air, or carbon dioxide. This enables breweries to produce sterile and particle-free utihties for the brewing processes. 

When larger amounts of ruthenium catalyst are used (0.3-0.5 eq), the removal of colored, toxic ruthenium metal by-products is problematic and requires multiple purifications by silica gel column chromatography interspersed with activated carbon treatments. ... 

Carbon treatment New baths do not require activated carbon purification. Circulation through a carbon-packed filter tube is recommended to control organic contamination for design and number, consult with supplier. The need for batch carbon treatment is indicated by corner cracking after reflow duU, pink deposits and haze, haloing, or comet trails around the PTH. Carbon-treat about every 1,500 (Ah) per gal. The following is the procedure for batch carbon treatment. 

Several mentions have been made of plating bath purification by means of activated carbon treatment. Activated carbon can be used to purify most plating solutions, but should be preceded by filtration (if the system is not continuously filtered) to prevent contaminant particles covering the carbon surface and reducing its effectiveness. There are four basic methods of carbon treatment ... 

A wide range and a number of purification steps are required to make available hydrogen/synthesis gas having the desired purity that depends on use. Technology is available in many forms and combinations for specific hydrogen purification requirements. Methods include physical and chemical treatments (solvent scmbbing) low temperature (cryogenic) systems adsorption on soHds, such as active carbon, metal oxides, and molecular sieves, and various membrane systems. Composition of the raw gas and the amount of impurities that can be tolerated in the product determine the selection of the most suitable process. 

Additional phosphonic acid is derived from by-product streams. In the manufacture of acid chlorides from carboxyUc acids and PCl, phosphonic acid or pyrophosphonic acid is produced, frequentiy with copious quantities of yellow polymeric LOOP. Such mixtures slowly evolve phosphine, particularly on heating, and formerly were a disposal problem. However, purification of this cmde mixture affords commercial phosphonic acid. By-product acid is also derived from the precipitate of calcium salts in the manufacture of phosphinic acid. As a consequence of the treatments of the salt with sulfuric acid, carbonate is Hberated as CO2 and phosphonic acid goes into solution. 

The extent of purification depends on the use requirements. Generally, either intense aqueous extractive distillation, or post-treatment by fixed-bed absorption (qv) using activated carbon, molecular sieves (qv), and certain metals on carriers, is employed to improve odor and to remove minor impurities. Essence grade is produced by final distillation in nonferrous, eg, copper, equipment (66). 

Essentially no waste products are formed ia the USP process if hydriodic acid and either sodium hydroxide or sodium carbonate are used as reactants. Water results from use of the former a mole equivalent quantity of carbon dioxide is produced from the latter reagents. Higher quaUty grades may require some purification steps which may result ia wastes from the treatment. Disposal of these impurities must then be carried out. 

Makeup. Makeup treatment depends extensively on the source water. Some steam systems use municipal water as a source. These systems may require dechlorination followed by reverse osmosis (qv) and ion exchange. Other systems use weUwater. In hard water areas, these systems include softening before further purification. Surface waters may require removal of suspended soHds by sedimentation (qv), coagulation, flocculation, and filtration. Calcium may be reduced by precipitation softening or lime softening. Organic contaminants can be removed by absorption on activated carbon. Details of makeup water treatment may be found in many handbooks (22—24) as well as in technical Hterature from water treatment chemical suppHers. 

Many attempts have been made to reduce the ammoniacal and sulfurous odor of the standard thioglycolate formulations. As the cosmetics market is very sensitive to the presence of impurities, odor, and color, various treatments of purification have been claimed to improve the olfactory properties of thioglycolic acid and its salts, such as distillation (33), stabilization against the formation of H2S using active ingredients (34), extraction with solvents (35), active carbon (36), and chelate resin treatments (37). 

By-products from EDC pyrolysis typically include acetjiene, ethylene, methyl chloride, ethyl chloride, 1,3-butadiene, vinylacetylene, benzene, chloroprene, vinyUdene chloride, 1,1-dichloroethane, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, 1,1,1-trichloroethane [71-55-6] and other chlorinated hydrocarbons (78). Most of these impurities remain with the unconverted EDC, and are subsequendy removed in EDC purification as light and heavy ends. The lightest compounds, ethylene and acetylene, are taken off with the HCl and end up in the oxychlorination reactor feed. The acetylene can be selectively hydrogenated to ethylene. The compounds that have boiling points near that of vinyl chloride, ie, methyl chloride and 1,3-butadiene, will codistiU with the vinyl chloride product. Chlorine or carbon tetrachloride addition to the pyrolysis reactor feed has been used to suppress methyl chloride formation, whereas 1,3-butadiene, which interferes with PVC polymerization, can be removed by treatment with chlorine or HCl, or by selective hydrogenation. 

Methods of Purification. Although carbon dioxide produced and recovered by the methods outlined above has a high purity, it may contain traces of hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide, which cause a slight odor or taste. The fermentation gas recovery processes include a purification stage, but carbon dioxide recovered by other methods must be further purified before it is acceptable for beverage, dry ice, or other uses. The most commonly used purification methods are treatments with potassium permanganate, potassium dichromate, or active carbon. 

Other Uses. The quantity of coal used for purposes other than combustion or processing is quite small (2,6). Coal, especially anthracite, has estabHshed markets for use as purifying and filtering agents in either the natural form or converted to activated carbon (see Carbon). The latter can be prepared from bituminous coal or coke, and is used in sewage treatment, water purification, respirator absorbers, solvent recovery, and in the food industry. Some of these markets are quite profitable and new uses are continually being sought for this material. 

The purification of saccharified starch depends on the raw material used, and may be different from plant to plant. When the starch slurry is hquefied ia a jet cooker the saccharification process is carried out at 55—65°C, pH 4—4.5, for 24—72 hours. The subsequent steps consist of filtration or centrifiigation, ion exchange, isomerization, treatment with activated carbon, and evaporation to form a storage-stable product. 

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