• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.99-109
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• 2016

We investigated the relation between the presence of geosmin in water and the bacterial community structure within the granular activated carbon (GAC) system of water treatment plants in South Korea. GAC samples were collected in May and August of 2014 at three water treatment plants (Sungnam, Koyang, and Yeoncho in Korea). Dissolved organic carbon and geosmin were analyzed before and after GAC treatment. Geosmin was found in raw water from Sungnam and Koyang water treatment plants but not in that from Yeoncho water treatment plant. Interestingly, but not surprisingly, the 16S rRNA clone library indicated that the bacterial communities from the Sungnam and Koyang GAC systems were closely related to geosmin-degrading bacteria. Based on the phylogenetic tree and multidimensional scaling plot, bacterial clones from GAC under the influence of geosmin were clustered with Variovorax paradoxus strain DB 9b and Comamonas sp. DB mg. In other words, the presence of geosmin in water might have inevitably contributed to the growth of geosmin degraders within the respective GAC system.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.289-292
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• 2014

The effect of carbon dioxide ($CO_2$) on global warming is serious problem. The adsorption with solid sorbents is one of the most appropriate options. In this study, the most interesting adsorbent is granular activated carbon (GAC). It is suitable material for $CO_2$ adsorption because of its simple availability, many specific surface area, and low-cost material. Afterwards, GAC was impregnated with chitosan solution as impregnated granular activated carbon (CGAC) in order to improve the adsorption capacity of GAC. This research aims to compare the physical and chemical characteristics of GAC and CGAC. The experiment was carried out to evaluate the efficiency of $CO_2$ adsorption between GAC and CGAC. The results indicated that the iodine number of GAC and CGAC was 137.17 and 120.30 mg/g, respectively. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller results (BET) of both GAC and CGAC show that specific surface area was 301.9 and $531.3m^2/g$, respectively; total pore volume was 0.16 and $0.29cm^3/g$, respectively; and mean diameter of pore was 2.18 and 2.15 nm, respectively. Finally, the $CO_2$ adsorption results of both GAC and CGAC in single column how the maximum adsorption capacity was 0.17 and 0.25 mol/kg, respectively; how degeneration time was 49.6 and 80.0 min, respectively; and how the highest efficiency of $CO_2$ adsorption was 91.92% and 91.19%, respectively.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.501-508
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• 2009

In this study, the characteristics of granular activated carbon (GAC) supported metal was investigated in an area influenced by flame discharge and temperature variation during irradiating microwave. The modified GAC was formulated by impregnating metal hydroxides of nickel (Ni/GAC), barium (Ba/GAC), copper (Cu/GAC), zinc (Zn/GAC), cobalt (Co/GAC) and lanthanum (La/GAC). Ba/GAC was selected as it showed lack of spark discharge and temperature increasing aspects. Comparison of adsorption and desorption amount of GAC and Ba/GAC showed that adsorption and desorption rate of the GAC were higher than those of Ba/GAC. The results show that the presence of barium can decrease adsorption/desorption rate because of plugging pore of GAC. Toluene regeneration rate of Ba/GAC was better than that of GAC due to barium loading. Finally, GAC with barium can be controled a rapid increasing temperature and spark discharge, increased the regeneration rate of toluene during desorption by irradiating microwave.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.31-38
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• 2008

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the variation of the molecular size distribution by granular activated carbon (GAC) adsorption. GAC adsorption was assessed by using the rapid small-scale column test (RSSCT) and high-performance size-exclusion chromatography (HPSEC) was used to analyze the molecular size distribution (MSD) in the effluent of GAC column. RSSCT study suggested that GAC adsorption exhibited excellent interrelationship between dissolved organic carbon (DOC) breakthrough and MSD as function of bed volumes passed. After GAC treatment, the nonadsorbable fraction which was about 25percents of influent DOC corresponded to the hydrophilic (HPI) natural organic carbon (NOM) of NOM fractions and was composed entirely of <300 molecular weight (MW) in the HPSEC at the initial stage of the RSSCT operation. The dominant MW fraction in the source water was 1,000~5,000daltons. At the bed volumes 2,500, MW <500 of GAC treated water was risen rather than it of source water. After the bed volumes 7,300 of operation, the MW 1,000~3,000 fraction was closed to about 80percents of DOC found in the GAC influent. The Number-average molecular weight (Mn) value determined using HPSEC for the effluent of GAC column was gently increased as DOC breakthrough progress. The quotient p(Mw/Mn) can be used to estimate the degree of polydispersity was shown greatest value for the GAC effluent at the initial stage of the RSSCT operation.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.73-81
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• 1993

Adsorption process using granular activated carbon(GAC) has been considered as one of the most effective water treatment technologies to remove humic acid which is recon- niEed as trihalomethane(THM) precursor in chlorination. To design the most effective GAC process, it is necessary to conduct the test of adsor- ption performance by means of isothem, batch rate and column studies and to select the most effective activated carbon according to raw materials of GAC - lignite and coconut shell. The objective of this study is to investigate the adsorption performance of humid acid on two activated carbons - lignite activated carbon(LAC) and coconut shell activated car- bon(CAC) made in Korea. It is available to represent UV-abs and trihalomethane formation potential(THMFP) as concentration of humic acid due to good relationship. The adsorption capacity of humid acid is not concerned with surface area of activated carbon but with pore size related to about $100{\AA}$, and then LAC forming at the extent of mesopore is found to be eight times more effective in adsorption capacity than CAC forming at micropore. The adsorption capacity of LAC and CAC is better at pH 5.5 than at pH 7. Pore and surface diffusion coefficients calculated from the diffusion model are $7.61\times10^{-13}m^2/sec$, $3.52\times10^{-15}m^2/sec$ for CAC, and $3.38\times10^{-12}m^2$/sec and $Ds=1.48{\times}10^{-15}m^2/sec$ for GAC respectively. From the results of column test it shows that the performance of LAC is also better than CAC and the optimal EBCT(Empty Bed Contact Time) is 4.52min. and activated carbon removes selectively the components of humic acid to be easily formed to THM.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.91-97
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• 2008

The objective of this research is to investigate the effect of the addition of granular activated carbon (GAC) and granular sludge on the performance of upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactors for treating leachate. For the control reactor, sludge obtained from an anaerobic digester was used as a seed material. On the other hand, GAC and granular sludge were incorporated with the seed sludge in the GAC reactor and the Granule reactor, respectively. The shortest acclimation period was observed in the Granule reactor. The GAC reactor also gave comparable performance to the Granule reactor at the beginning of operation. However, as the adsorptive capacity of GAC was exhausted, the effluent COD concentration increased gradually. Once the systems were stabilized, the GAC reactor showed slightly better results than the other two reactors in terms of chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal. COD removal in all reactors was more than 90% at hydraulic retention time of 1.0 day. Furthermore, GAC reactor showed little variation in COD removal rate and remained at 95% with organic loading rate (OLR) of 4.0 to $8.2kg\;COD/m^3.d$. Initial operating period was reduced by the addition of granular sludge, while the treatment efficiency was enhanced by the addition of GAC.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.285-289
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• 2006

In this study, the effect of an acidic treatment on granular activated carbon (GAC) and activated carbon fibers (ACF) was investigated for a $Pb^{2+}$ and $Ni^{2+}$ ion adsorption. 1.0 M nitric acid solution was used as the acid solution for the surface treatment. Surface properties of the GAC and ACF were characterized by the pH, elemental analysis and pHpzc (pH of the point of zero charge). Their specific surface area and the pore structure were also evaluated by the nitrogen adsorption data at 77K. As a result, the acidic treatment led to an increase of the oxygen-containing functional groups. Furthermore, the adsorption capacity of the acid-treated GAC and ACF was improved in the order of acidic-ACF > untreated-ACF > acidic-GAC > untreated-GAC, though the decrease in specific surface area induced by a pore blocking of the functional groups was observed.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.579-586
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• 2006

The purposes of this paper were to monitor the temperature rising courses and spark discharge of the modified granular activated carbon (GAC) by microwave (MW) irradiation and to evaluate absorption of benzene. The GAC coated on $SiO_2$, boron, talc, ferrite was named as the modified GAC. Thermal and spark discharge measurement of virgin GAC and modifed GAC has been carried out using a MW device operating at 2450 MHz under various energy conditions. The results of this paper as follows. First, the modified GAC is more efficient than the virgin GAC in temperature control. Temperature gradient of the modified GAC is more lower than that of virgin GAC. The temperature gradient of GAC was observed in the following order : virgin GAC, Mn-Zn ferrite/GAC, Ni-Zn ferrite,/GAC, $SiO_2/GAC$, Boron/GAC, Talc/GAC. Second, the spark discharge of the modified GAC was diminished, compared with that of virgin GAC. Because of its excellent electrical insulating properties, the coating material prevents the spark discharge. Finally, the benzene adsorption capacity of the modified GAC decreased due to diminishing of adsorption site by the coating material. Considering the temperature gradient and spark discharge of GAC, the GAC coated $SiO_2$ would be appropriate absorbent under irradiation of MW.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.24 no.9
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• pp.1163-1170
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• 2015

This study carried out continuous column test for estimating the regeneration efficiency with regeneration times and temperatures. More times regenerated granular activated carbon (GAC) has more ash in the GAC and has less apparent density. Two times regenerated GAC ($2^{nd}$ re-GAC) could removed the Trihalomethanes (THMs) in the water for the first two week after starting continuous column test, on the other hand five times regenerated GAC ($5^{th}$ re-GAC) did not have adsorption capacity. The THMs concentration in the effluent was almost equal or higher than that of influent at the first time of continuous column test. $2^{nd}$ re-GAC showed much more DOC adsorption capacity than $5^{th}$ re-GAC and the GAC which was regenerated with $700^{\circ}C$ had highest DOC removal efficiency among the GACs with 600, 700, 800, $900^{\circ}C$ regeneration temperatures. It is anticipated the cost of GAC regeneration could be saved more 100 million won by reducing the furnace temperature of 3rd~4th and 5th~6th about $150^{\circ}C$ compared to the current regeneration condition.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.177-188
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• 2010

The use of an activated carbon (AC) system alone has the limitation that the pollutants are not eliminated but only transferred to another phase with the consumed AC becoming hazardous waste itself. Therefore, the present study investigated the feasibility of using a combined system of granular AC (GAC) with S-doped visible-light-induced $TiO_2$ (GAC/S-doped $TiO_2$) to clean monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (MAHs) with concentrations at $\leq$ 3 mg $m^{-3}$, using a continuous air-flow reactor. This study conducted three different experiments: an adsorption test of pure GAC and GAC/S-doped $TiO_2$; a long-term adsorptional photocatalytic (AP) activity test of GAC/S-doped $TiO_2$; and an AP activity test of GAC/S-doped $TiO_2$ under different conditions. For the AP activity test, three parameters were evaluated: various weights of GAC/S-doped $TiO_2$ (0.9, 4.4, and 8.9 g); various flow rates (FRs) (0.5, 1 and 2 L $min^{-1}$); and various input concentrations (ICs) of the target MAHs (0.1, 1, 2 and 3 mg $m^{-3}$). The adsorption efficiencies were similar for the pure GAC and GAC/S-doped $TiO_2$ reactors, suggesting that S-doped $TiO_2$ particles on GAC surfaces do not significantly interfere with the adsorption capacity of GAC. Benzene exhibited a clear AP activity, whereas no other target MAHs did. In most cases, the AP efficiencies for the target MAHs did not significantly vary with an increase in weight, thereby suggesting that, under the weight range tested in this study, the weights or FRs are not important parameters for AP efficiency. However, ICs did influence the AP efficiencies.