Molecules, Vol. 28, Pages 6493: Removal of Hexamethyldisiloxane via a Novel Hydrophobic (3–Aminopropyl)Trimethoxysilane-Modified Activated Porous Carbon

Molecules, Vol. 28, Pages 6493: Removal of Hexamethyldisiloxane via a Novel Hydrophobic (3–Aminopropyl)Trimethoxysilane-Modified Activated Porous Carbon

Molecules doi: 10.3390/molecules28186493

Authors: Siqi Lv Yingrun Wang Yanhui Zheng Zichuan Ma

Volatile methyl siloxanes (VMS) must be removed because the formation of silica in the combustion process seriously affects the resource utilization of biogas. Herein, a series of APTMS ((3–aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane)-modified activated porous carbon (APC) adsorbents (named APTMS@APC) were prepared for VMS efficient removal. The as-prepared adsorbents were characterized using SEM, FTIR, Raman, X-ray diffraction analyses, and N2 adsorption/desorption. The results showed that the surface modification with APTMS enhanced the hydrophobicity of APC with the water contact angle increasing from 74.3° (hydrophilic) to 127.1° (hydrophobic), and meanwhile improved its texture properties with the SBET increasing from 981 to 1274 m2 g−1. The maximum breakthrough adsorption capacity of APTMS@APC for hexamethyldisiloxane (L2, model pollutant) was 360.1 mg g−1. Effects of an inlet L2 concentration (31.04–83.82 mg L−1) and a bed temperature (0–50 °C) on the removal of L2 were investigated. Meanwhile, after five adsorption–desorption cycles, the APTMS@APC demonstrated a superior cycling performance. This indicated that the hydrophobic APTMS@APC has a great significance to remove VMS.