Adsorption and regeneration on activated carbon fiber cloth for volatile organic compounds at indoor concentration levels.

There are increasing concerns about indoor volatile organic compounds (VOCs) regarding their health effects and frequent occurrence. Adsorption using granular activated carbon (GAC) is a safe methodology for removing VOCs from indoor air. Although GAC has been widely used to remove VOCs from indoor air, the use of activated carbon fiber cloth (ACFC) is a promising substitute to the conventional activated carbon because of its regenerative properties; hence, this paper provides promising results for the application of ACFC as a regenerative adsorbent for the removal of VOCs from indoor air. The impacts of operating variables on the adsorption/regeneration performance of the ACFC were assessed. A single-layer ACFC exhibited remarkable adsorption and regenerative properties using 100 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) toluene as the indoor contaminant. The use of Joule heating regeneration technique showed that the ACFC was rapid and efficient in removing the low initial loading of toluene. Even after continuous adsorption/regeneration cycles the ACFC showed very good performance. After over 300 heating and cooling cycles the ACFC showed excellent durability and adsorption capacity.