Adsorption and desorption of m-xylene from supercritical carbon dioxide onactivated carbon

The equilibrium loadings of m-xylene from supercritical carbon dioxide on a ctivated carbon are reported. The experimental data were obtained by measur ing the outlet concentration of ni-xylene eluted from a column packed with activated carbon until the effluent reached the input concentration. The Fr eundlich isotherm expression was found to correlate the experimental data s atisfactorily. In a second step, the regeneration by supercritical carbon d ioxide of activated carbon loaded with m-xylene was investigated. The exper imental data demonstrated that the adsorptive capacities of the regenerated activated carbon for m-xylene after many cycles were close to those of the virgin carbon and remained stable. The effects of temperature, pressure, a nd flow rate on regeneration efficiency were also studied.