Abstract
•Cellulose has potential to be used as natural/modified adsorbent.•Natural cellulose shows lower adsorption capacity as compared to modified cellulose.•Cellulose can be a promising precursor for production of activated carbon.•Potential applications of activated carbons from cellulose in adsorption are reviewed.•Scope for future work on activated carbons from cellulose is discussed.
Cellulose is a biodegradable, renewable, non-meltable polymer which is insoluble in most solvents due to hydrogen bonding and crystallinity. Natural cellulose shows lower adsorption capacity as compared to modified cellulose and its capacity can be enhanced by modification usually by chemicals. This review focuses on the utilization of cellulose as an adsorbent in natural/modified form or as a precursor for activated carbon (AC) for adsorbing substances from water. The literature revealed that cellulose can be a promising precursor for production of activated carbon with appreciable surface area (∼1300m2g−1) and total pore volume (∼0.6cm3g−1) and the surface area and pore volume varies with the cellulose content. Finally, the purpose of review is to report a few controversies and unresolved questions concerning the preparation/properties of ACs from cellulose and to make aware to readers that there is still considerable scope for future development, characterization and utilization of ACs from cellulose.