# Using plain old BBQ charcoal instead of "carbon"



## Danny (1 Sep 2012)

Has anyone tried using standard bbq charcoal or similar instead of shop bought carbon? It is basically the same thing right?


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## darren636 (1 Sep 2012)

depends how the charcoal is made, using which chemicals during burning,,,, risky


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## ceg4048 (1 Sep 2012)

Hello,
         There is little benefit  to the use barbecue charcoal. Although it may be the same material in some cases, it is not activated. The activation of charcoal is what generates the extremely high surface area which allows the high adsorption efficiencies. 



 






Activation is accomplished using high temperature steam often in excessof 1000 deg.C or with other gasses such as CO2 or Oxygen, which essentially bores out  tiny holes within the charcoal structure. This greatly increases the number of adsorption sites per unit volume. Charcoal activated in this manner will have anywhere from 500-1500 square meters per gram of material of adsorption area. Activation can also be accomplished using chemical means, such as with strong acids.

Cheers,


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## Danny (1 Sep 2012)

Cheers guys, there goes that idea then lol


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