KARAKTERISASI GUGUS FUNGSI PADA KARBON AKTIF KULIT JAGUNG MENGGUNAKAN UJI FOURIER TRANSFORM INFRARED SEBAGAI BAHAN PEMBUATAN ADSORBEN

Corn husks are known to be able to separate organic and inorganic chemical substances or compounds in water by converting corn husks into active carbon as a basic ingredient for making adsorbents or solids. Corn husks have a high cellulose fiber content and have a chemical composition of 44.08% cellulose; 5.08% ash; 4.67% alcohol-cyclohexane; and 15% lignin. In the process of making activated carbon from corn husks, there are two processes that must be carried out, including the carbonation and activation processes. The corn husks that have gone through the carbonation process are ground and sifted using a 60 mesh and 100 mesh sieve, then the carbon powder is activated by adding 80 ml of HCL and 40 ml of NH4OH, then the washing process is carried out with distilled water and dried at a temperature of 100oC and 110oC. The test was carried out using an FTIR tool or commonly known as an infrared spectrophotometer and the results of the test were analyzed. The FTIR test results indicate that the adsorbent sample has functional group compounds in that there are C-H groups, aromatic C=C, C-H bend, and C-O carbonyl groups used to bind the adsorbate. From the results of the research, there is an influence in the size variations of 60 and 100 mesh on the characteristics of the functional groups. It can be seen from several bond areas on the graph, but the highest peak is at the same wave number 1598.99 and indicates an aromantic C=C group. The results of testing the two adsorbents show a difference in the graph, for the 60 mesh adsorbent the graph has a lower peak, while the 100 mesh adsorbent has a higher peak which results in the formation of several functional groups.
Keywords: Corn husks, Activated carbon, Adsorbent, Functional groups, FTIR