Studies on Adsorptive Desulfurization by Activated Carbon

Sulfur removal using adsorption requires a proper process parametric study to determine its optimal performance characteristics. In this study, response surface methodology was employed for sulfur removal from model oil (dibenzothiophene; DBT dissolved in iso‐octane) using commercial activated carbon (CAC) as an adsorbent. Experiments were carried out as per central composite design with four input parameters such as initial concentration ( C 0 : 100–900 mg/L), adsorbent dosage ( m : 2–22 g/L), time of adsorption ( t : 15–735 min), and temperature ( T : 10–50°C). Regression analysis showed good fit of the experimental data to the second‐order polynomial model with coefficient of determination R 2 ‐value of 0.9390 and Fisher F ‐value of 16.5. The highest removal of sulfur by CAC was obtained with m  = 20 g/L, t  = 6 h, and T  = 30°C.