Artikel Synthesis and Characterization of Nano Activated Carbon of Corn Cob Charcoal as an Adsorbent of Health Masks

Corn is widely grown by Indonesians as a carbohydrate-producing food. In every major harvest, a lot of corn waste, such as the cobs, has not been used properly. Therefore, in this study, corn cobs will be used as one of the adsorbent materials for health masks. Corn cobs are synthesized into activated carbon with variations in carbonization temperature to form a structure with the ability as an adsorbent. Corn cobs were synthesized using the coprecipitation method of HCl and NH4OH followed by the carbonization process with temperature variations of 100°C and 400°C with a holding time of 5 hours. Material characterization using DTA TG (Differential Thermal Analysis-Thermogravimetry), XRD (X-ray Diffraction), FTIR (Transform Infrared Spectrometer), and SEM-EDX (Scanning Electron Microscope-Energy Dispersive X-ray). The results from DTA-TGA show that at temperatures above 250°C there is no mass addition and it is constant up to a temperature of 400°C. So that it becomes an indicator that the desired phase is formed. The X-ray diffraction pattern of activated carbon corn cob charcoal powder with a carbonization temperature of 100°C has an amorphous structure and the carbonization temperature of 400°C corresponds to the phase crystal structure graphite C hexagonal with a crystal size of 100 nm. From the results of the FTIR test, it is shown that the typical components of activated carbon are O-H, C-O, C=C, and C-H functional groups. The C=C group of the aromatic ring is a typical compound of activated carbon. And the morphology of the SEM test results of activated carbon corn cob charcoal powder at a carbonization temperature of 100°C shows the distribution of small particles with an average particle size of 200 nm and at a carbonization temperature of 400°C shows a more even distribution of particles and the surface area increases with a particle size on average is 100 nm. So that the activated carbon nanocrystals of corncob charcoal powder as a result of this study can potentially be used as an adsorbent in the manufacture of health masks.