Factorial design analysis for adsorption of sulfur compounds from diesel oil on activated charcoal

Batch adsorption equilibrium of the sulfur compounds from diesel oil using two types of commercial activated carbon was studied in a two-level factorial experimental design method. This technique has been used to investigate the impacts of several factors controlling the adsorption process, such as source of sorbent material, amount of sorbent material used, and temperature. High percentages of adsorption of sulfur compounds were obtained using the sorbent materials tested. The analysis of variance and the factorial design of experiments showed that the amount of sorbent material used was the most significant factor under the experimental ranges studied. Also, a predictive regression model for the experimental data was generated. The capability of the generated regression model was studied, where excellent agreement between the experimental and predicted values was observed.