Effect of VOC loading on the ozone removal efficiency of activated carbon filters

Activated carbon (AC) filters are used widely in air cleaning to remove volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and ozone (O(3)). This paper investigates the O(3) removal efficiency of AC filters after previous exposure to VOCs. Filter performance was tested using coconut shell AC and two common indoor VOCs, toluene and d-limonene, representing low and high reactivities with O(3). AC dosed with low, medium and high loadings (28-100% of capacity) of VOCs were exposed to humidified and ozonated air. O(3) breakthrough curves were measured, from which O(3) removal capacity and parameters of the Elovich chemisorption equation were determined. VOC-loaded filters were less efficient at removing O(3) and had different breakthrough behavior than unloaded filters. After 80 h of exposure, VOC-loaded AC samples exhibited 75-95% of the O(3) removal capacity of unloaded samples. O(3) breakthrough and removal capacity were not strongly influenced by the VOC-loading rate. Toluene-loaded filters showed rapid O(3) breakthrough due to poisoning of the AC, while pseudo-poisoning (initially higher O(3) adsorption rates that rapidly decrease) is suggested for limonene-loaded filters. Overall, VOC loadings provide an overall reduction in chemisorption rates, a modest reduction in O(3) removal capacity, and sometimes dramatic changes in breakthrough behavior, important considerations in filter applications in environments where both O(3) and VOCs are present.