Preparation and Characterization of Activated Carbon From Banana Peels (Musa Acuminate L.)

The purposes of this experiment were to prepare and characterize activated carbon from the peels of Banana “pisang kepok” (musa acuminate L). Carbon from the peels of Banana “pisang kepok” was prepared by pyrolysis at 3000C for 1 hour. This carbon was activated using chemical activation process with various activating reagent and concentration. The activated carbon was characterized using Indonesian National Standard, SNI 06-3730-1995, that is maximum water content of 15%, maximum vapor content of 25%, maximum ash content of 10% and bounded carbon content at least 65%. The results showed that the highest bounded carbon content obtained from pyrolysis was 73.2%. The best activating reagent was H2SO4 with concentration of 4N that improved the bounded carbon to 89.8%. The water content, ash content, and vapor content of activated carbon was obtained as follows, 0.6%, 2.2%,and 8%. Based on this results, activated carbon of banana peel conformed the SNI 06-3730-1995 values and will be applied as a thermoelectric material.