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Journal of Wood Science

Official Journal of the Japan Wood Research Society

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Volume 55 Supplement 6

Special Issue on Wood Science and Technology for Mitigation of Global Warming

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Molecular sieving behavior of carbonized wood: selective adsorption of toluene from a gas mixture containing α-pinene

Journal of Wood Science volume 55, pages 446–452 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

The adsorption properties of wood carbonized at various temperatures were investigated using a mixed gas containing toluene and α-pinene. Hinoki (Chamaecyparis obtusa) samples carbonized at 500°–1100°C were exposed to gas mixtures of toluene and α-pinene at 20°C. The samples carbonized at 500°–700°C only adsorbed toluene, whereas those carbonized at 800°–1100°C adsorbed both toluene and α-pinene. Analysis of the surface structure of the carbonized wood by nitrogen adsorption at liquid nitrogen temperature indicated that the sample carbonized at 700°C had micropores mainly 0.6 nm in diameter and few mesopores, whereas the samples carbonized at 900°C and 1100°C had mesopores and micropores larger than 0.8 nm in diameter. With the sample carbonized at 700°C, the flat-shaped toluene molecules could probably penetrate into the narrower pores, 0.8 nm in diameter, whereas the bulky globular-shaped α-pinene molecules could not. Carbonization at temperatures higher than 900°C probably enlarged the pore size and thereby reduced the selectivity of adsorption. The results revealed that wood carbonized below activation temperature has a unique flat-pore structure that seems to work as a kind of molecular sieving carbon, successfully removing only the harmful volatile organic compound (VOC), toluene, and leaving behind a pleasant aroma of α-pinene in the atmosphere.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Industrial Research Institute of Shizuoka Prefecture, 2078 Makigaya, Aoi-ku, Shizuoka, 421-1298, Japan

    Rie Yamashita & Satoshi Sakuragawa

  2. Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan

    Yukie Saito

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  1. Rie Yamashita
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  2. Yukie Saito
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Correspondence to Rie Yamashita.

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Yamashita, R., Saito, Y. & Sakuragawa, S. Molecular sieving behavior of carbonized wood: selective adsorption of toluene from a gas mixture containing α-pinene. J Wood Sci 55, 446–452 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10086-009-1062-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10086-009-1062-0

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