This proposed work builds on earlier developed technology for the surface modification of activated carbons. Activated carbons are widely used as absorbents in defense and commercial applications such as safety (gas masks), drinking water clean-up, and production of high-purity chemicals. Previously, it has been demonstrated that surface modification technology may be used to place high concentrations of specific absorption (acid, base) sites on the internal surfaces of activated carbons. In the proposed work, these sites will be further modified via ion exchange to place known concentrations of highly dispersed metal atoms on the surface. These absorbents should offer significantly higher selectivity and capacity for a range of toxic chemical such as CW agents, ammonia, amines and ethylene oxide as compared to conventional impregnated absorbents.
