Process description and product cost to manufacture sugarcane bagasse-based granular activated carbon

Process flow diagrams and manufacturing costs were developed to convert sugarcane bagasse to granular activated carbon. Unit operations in the conversion process consisted of milling, pelletization, pyrolysis/activation, washing with acid and water, and drying/screening/collecting of the final product. Process parameters were calculated for a production facility processing 10,000 kg/day of bagasse and 4,000 kg/day of sugarcane molasses used as a binder. Final product yield for steam activation of the bagasse/binder pellets was 20% or 2,000 kg of activated carbon produced per day. Material losses were incurred during milling (20%), pyrolysis/activation (80%), acid/water washing (15%), and sieving the final product (5%). Based on an annual production cost of $1.94 million and an annual production of 621,000 kg of carbon, steam-activated bagasse carbon would cost $3.12/kg.