Activation of Carbon by Pyrolysis of Jaggery
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree of
Master of Technology
Submitted By:
Diwakar Richhariya 24M1858
Under the Supervision of:
Prof. Aparna Singh
Process Engineering
Department of Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY BOMBAY
JUNE 2026
i
DECLARATION
I declare that the written submission represents my own words, and where others’ ideas or words have
been included, I have adequately cited and referenced the sources. I also declare that I have adhered
to all principles of academic honesty and integrity and have not misrepresented or falsified any
idea/data, fact/source in my submission. I understand that any violation of the above will be cause for
disciplinary action by the Institute and can also evoke penal action from the sources that have thus not
been properly cited or from whom proper permission has not been taken when needed.
Diwakar Richhariya
24M1858
Date: 30-06-26
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I want to express my gratitude to Prof. Aparna Singh of Metallurgical Engineering and Material
science Dept. Indian institute of technology Bombay. who guided me in the project entitled “activation
of carbon by pyrolysis of jaggery”. I want to thank them for helping me and giving priceless
suggestions. I want to thank Mr. Chintu mittal and Mr. Shahil dar. M.TECH students of my department
for giving me advice in order of completion of project. I would like to express my appreciation to
nanoengineering lab members who generously devoted their time to share their valuable insights on
various topics related to academia.
Diwakar Richhariya
IITB,30 JUNE 2026
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ABSTRACT
Activated carbon is a highly porous carbonaceous material widely used in adsorption, water
purification, energy storage, gas separation, and environmental remediation applications. This study
explores the production of activated carbon from jaggery, a natural and inexpensive carbon-rich
precursor, through the pyrolysis process. Jaggery contains a high concentration of carbohydrates that
undergo thermal decomposition when heated in an inert atmosphere, resulting in the formation of a
carbonaceous char.
The pyrolysis process was carried out within a temperature range of 350–600°C, where the organic
constituents of jaggery decomposed to produce biochar with enhanced carbon content. The influence
of temperature, heating rate, and residence time on carbon yield and pore development was
investigated. During pyrolysis, volatile compounds were released, leaving behind a porous carbon
structure.
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Contents
1.1 Background of activated carbon .................................................................................................2
1.2 Activated carbon ......................................................................................................................... 3
1.3 Biomass as a carbon source ........................................................................................................4
1.4 Jaggery as a carbon precursor.....................................................................................................5
LITERATURE REVIEW .....................................................................................................................6
2.1 Introduction to activated carbon .................................................................................................7
2.2 Recent developments ..................................................................................................................7
2.3 Carbon material ..........................................................................................................................8
2.4 growing application of activated carbon .................................................................................... 8
2.5 Summary of Literature Review ..................................................................................................9
Objectives and experimental planning ...............................................................................................10
3.1 objectives .................................................................................................................................. 11
3.2 Experimental planning.............................................................................................................. 11
Materials and Methodology................................................................................................................ 12
4.1 material and chemicals .............................................................................................................13
4.2 Methodology ............................................................................................................................13
4.2.1 Pre-treatment of Jaggery ....................................................................................................13
4.2.2 Carbonization .....................................................................................................................13
4.2.3 KOH activation ..................................................................................................................14
4.2.4 Pyrolysis ............................................................................................................................14
References ......................................................................................................................................15
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Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of activated carbon
The increasing demand for sustainable and environmentally friendly materials has stimulated
extensive research into the development of carbon-based materials from renewable resources.
Among these materials, activated carbon has emerged as one of the most versatile and widely
used adsorbents due to its exceptional surface area, porous structure, and adsorption capacity.
Activated carbon is extensively utilized in water purification, wastewater treatment, air
pollution control, gas storage, catalysis, pharmaceutical industries, and energy storage
devices such as supercapacitors and batteries.
Traditionally, activated carbon has been produced from non-renewable sources such as coal
and petroleum coke. However, concerns regarding environmental sustainability, depletion of
fossil resources, and increasing production costs have motivated researchers to explore
biomass-derived precursors for activated carbon synthesis. Agricultural waste, plant residues,
fruit peels, coconut shells, wood, and sugar-rich biomass have attracted considerable attention
as alternative carbon sources. These renewable materials provide a cost-effective and
environmentally sustainable route for producing activated carbon.
2
1.2 Activated carbon
Activated carbon is a highly porous carbonaceous material characterized by a large internal
surface area and a well-developed pore network. The remarkable adsorption properties of
activated carbon arise from its micro-, meso-, and macroporous structures. The surface area
of activated carbon can range from several hundred to more than 2000 m²/g depending on the
preparation method and activation conditions.
The effectiveness of activated carbon depends on the given factors
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Surface area
Pore volume
Pore size distribution
Surface functional groups
Carbon purity
Due to these properties ,activated carbon is widely used for removing pollutants ,dyes ,heavy
metals ,and organic contamination from water and air .in recent years, activated carbon has
also gained importance in advanced energy storage systems and catalyst support applications
.
3
1.3 Biomass as a carbon source
Biomass represents an abundant and renewable source of carbon. It consists primarily of
carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and small quantities of nitrogen and sulphur. biomass based carbon
materials offer several advantages such as
1.
2.
3.
4.
Low production cost
Renewable and sustainable in nature
Abundant availability
Reduced environmental impact
So the conversion of biomass into carbon material through thermomechanical processes has
become an important area of research. among the available thermomechanical methods
,pyrolysis is one of the most effective techniques for producing carbon rich materials .
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1.4 Jaggery as a carbon precursor
Jaggery is an unrefined natural sweetener obtained from sugarcane juice or palm sap.it
contains a high concentration of carbohydrates. mainly sucrose, glucose, and fructose, along
witch trace of minerals and organic compounds. due to its high carbon content and
homogeneous composition, jaggery serves as excellent precursor for carbon production.
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Chapter 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
6
2.1 Introduction to activated carbon
Activated carbon has emerged as one of the most important porous materials due to its high specific
surface area, excellent adsorption capacity, chemical stability, and tunable pore structure.
Traditionally, activated carbon has been produced from coal, petroleum coke, and wood-based
materials. However, increasing environmental concerns and the need for sustainable technologies
have encouraged researchers to investigate renewable biomass resources as alternative carbon
precursors. Biomass-derived activated carbon offers several advantages, including low cost, wide
availability, renewability, and reduced environmental impact. Recent studies have demonstrated that
agricultural residues, fruit peels, lignocellulosic wastes, sugar-rich feedstocks, and foodprocessing
by-products can be successfully converted into activated carbon through pyrolysis and activation
processes. The physicochemical properties of the resulting carbon materials strongly depend on
precursor composition, carbonization temperature, activation method, and processing conditions.
Research has shown that biomass-derived activated carbons can achieve high surface areas and
excellent adsorption performance comparable to commercially available activated carbons.
Pyrolysis is the most widely used thermochemical route for converting biomass into carbon-rich
materials. During pyrolysis, organic compounds are heated in an inert atmosphere, resulting in
dehydration, decomposition, depolymerization, and carbonization reactions. The process removes
volatile components and leaves behind a solid carbonaceous residue. The structural characteristics of
the resulting carbon are highly influenced by process parameters such as heating rate, final
temperature, residence time, and atmosphere. Studies have reported that increasing pyrolysis
temperature generally enhances carbon purity and pore development while reducing the overall
yield. Carbonization temperatures between 400°C and 900°C are commonly employed to obtain
activated carbon with desirable structural and adsorption properties. Researchers have further
demonstrated that controlled pyrolysis can promote the formation of disordered graphitic domains,
interconnected pore networks, and enhanced surface functionality, which are essential for adsorption
and electrochemical applications.
2.2 Recent developments
A major area of research in recent years has focused on the utilization of carbohydrate-rich
materials as carbon precursors. Sugars such as sucrose, glucose, fructose, and starch possess
high carbon content and undergo efficient thermal decomposition during pyrolysis. The
dehydration of these compounds leads to the formation of carbonaceous intermediates that
subsequently develop into porous carbon structures. The uniform molecular composition of
sugar-based materials often results in homogeneous carbon matrices with controllable
porosity. Because jaggery is composed primarily of sucrose along with glucose, fructose, and
minor organic constituents, its thermal behavior is expected to resemble that of other sugarrich feedstocks. During heating, the carbohydrates present in jaggery undergo dehydration
and aromatization reactions, producing carbon-rich structures and releasing volatile
compounds that contribute to pore formation. Although direct studies on jaggery-derived
activated carbon are limited, the extensive research on carbohydrate-derived carbons strongly
supports its potential as an effective precursor for porous carbon synthesis.
The activation process is a critical step in developing the porous structure of activated carbon.
Activation can be performed through physical methods using steam or carbon dioxide or
through chemical methods employing activating agents such as potassium hydroxide (KOH),
sodium hydroxide (NaOH), phosphoric acid (H₃PO₄), and zinc chloride (ZnCl₂). Chemical
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activation has gained considerable attention because it generally produces higher surface
areas and more developed pore structures at lower temperatures compared to physical
activation. Reviews of biomass-based activated carbon production have shown that KOH
activation is particularly effective in generating microporous carbon materials with
exceptionally high surface areas. The activating agents promote dehydration reactions, inhibit
tar formation, and facilitate pore development within the carbon matrix. Consequently, the
choice of activating agent significantly influences the adsorption performance, electrical
conductivity, and surface chemistry of the final carbon material
2.3 Carbon material
Several researchers have investigated the production of activated carbon from agricultural
and food-processing wastes. Biomass materials such as rice husk, sugarcane bagasse, corn
cob, coconut shell, banana peel, sugar beet residues, and other lignocellulosic feedstocks have
been successfully converted into activated carbon with promising adsorption characteristics.
These studies indicate that biomass-derived activated carbon can be utilized for removing
dyes, heavy metals, organic pollutants, and gaseous contaminants from water and air.
Research involving rice husk-derived activated carbon demonstrated that inexpensive
agricultural wastes can be transformed into highly porous carbon materials suitable for
adsorption and advanced material applications. Similar investigations on sugar beet fibers
and vegetable-processing wastes have shown that biomass precursors rich in carbon can yield
activated carbon with substantial surface area and sorption capacity when subjected to
optimized carbonization and activation conditions.
2.4 growing application of activated carbon
In addition to environmental remediation, biomass-derived activated carbon has found
growing applications in energy storage systems. Researchers have reported the successful use
of activated carbon obtained from renewable biomass sources as electrode materials for
supercapacitors, batteries, and fuel cells. The high surface area and porous architecture of
activated carbon facilitate efficient charge storage and ion transport. Studies using banana
peelderived activated carbon demonstrated promising electrochemical performance in
flexible supercapacitors, highlighting the potential of low-cost biomass resources for
sustainable energy applications. Furthermore, biomass-derived carbon materials have been
incorporated into lithium-ion and lithium-sulfur battery systems, where their porous
structures improve electrochemical stability and energy-storage performance. These
developments indicate that activated carbon produced from jaggery may also possess
significant potential for future energy-storage applications.
The structural properties of activated carbon are strongly dependent on the development of
porosity during pyrolysis and activation. Surface area, pore volume, and pore size distribution
are among the most important parameters governing adsorption performance. Researchers
have reported that the evolution of pore structures occurs through the release of volatile
compounds and the interaction of activating agents with the carbon matrix. Advanced
characterization techniques such as Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area analysis,
Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, and
8
Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) are commonly employed to investigate
these structural features. Studies consistently indicate that increased porosity and higher
surface area result in improved adsorption and electrochemical properties. Therefore,
optimization of pyrolysis conditions is essential for producing high-performance activated
carbon materials.
Despite extensive research on biomass-derived activated carbon, a significant research gap
remains regarding the direct utilization of jaggery as a carbon precursor. Most previous
investigations have concentrated on lignocellulosic biomass, agricultural residues, and
industrial by-products, while sugar-rich feedstocks such as jaggery have received
comparatively little attention. The high carbohydrate content, low cost, widespread
availability, and homogeneous composition of jaggery suggest that it could serve as an
excellent precursor for producing porous carbon materials. However, the influence of
pyrolysis temperature, heating rate, activation conditions, and residence time on the structural
characteristics of jaggery-derived carbon has not been comprehensively studied. This gap in
the literature provides strong motivation for the present work, which aims to synthesize
activated carbon from jaggery through pyrolysis and investigate its structural, morphological,
and adsorption properties.
2.5 Summary of Literature Review
The reviewed literature demonstrates that biomass-derived activated carbon has become an
important research area because of its environmental sustainability, low production cost, and
broad range of applications. Pyrolysis is recognized as an effective method for converting
carbon-rich biomass into porous carbon materials, while chemical activation significantly
enhances surface area and pore development. Previous studies have successfully produced
activated carbon from various agricultural and food-processing wastes; however, very limited
information is available regarding activated carbon production from jaggery. Therefore, the
present study seeks to address this research gap by exploring the feasibility of synthesizing
porous activated carbon from jaggery and evaluating its potential for environmental and
energy-related applications.
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Chapter 3
Objectives and experimental planning
10
3.1 objectives
The primary objective of this research is to synthesize porous activated carbon from jaggery
through the pyrolysis process .the study aims to explore the feasibility of utilizing jaggery as
a low cost renewable and carbon rich precursor for activated carbon production .
The specific objectives of the present works are
1. synthesis of carbon from jaggery
To prepare carboneous material from jaggery by controlled pyrolysis under an inert atmosphere within
the temperature range of 350 -600 °c
2. optimization of pyrolysis condition
To study the effect of pyrolysis temperature ,heating rate,and holding time on carbon yield
and pore development
3. Activation of carbon
To inhance the porosity and surface area through chemical activation using potassium
hydroxide (KOH) and investigate its influence on carbon structure .
4. surface area and porosity analysis
To determine the specific surface area ,pore volume ,pore size distribution using BET surface
area analysis
5. Evaluation of potential applications
To assess the suitability of jaggery derived activated carbon for adsorption ,water purification
.environmental remediation ,and energy storage applications.
3.2 Experimental planning
The experimental work is divided in six major stages
Stage1 procurement and pretreatment of raw material
Stage 2 carbonization by pyrolysis process
Stage 3 physical activation
Stage 4 chemical activation ( using activation agent KOH)
Stage 5 washing and purification
Stage 6 Data analysis
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Chapter 4
Materials and Methodology
12
4.1 material and chemicals
Raw jaggery used as the carbon precursor in the present study was procured from the local
market in Powai, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Prior to use, the jaggery was crushed, dried,
and processed to obtain a uniform feedstock suitable for pyrolysis.
Potassium hydroxide (KOH), employed as the chemical activating agent for the development
of porosity in the carbon matrix, and hydrochloric acid (HCl), used for washing and removal
of residual inorganic compounds after activation, were obtained from the Nanoengineering
Laboratory, Department of Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science, IIT Bombay.
Distilled water was used throughout the experimental work for sample preparation and
washing purposes.
4.2 Methodology
4.2.1 Pre-treatment of Jaggery
The raw jaggery procured from the Powai market was initially crushed into fine particles
using a mechanical crusher to obtain a uniform particle size. The crushed jaggery was then
dried in a hot air oven at a temperature range of 60–70°C for 6–7 hours. This drying process
was repeated over two consecutive days to ensure effective removal of moisture present in
the jaggery.
The purpose of this pre-treatment step was to eliminate residual moisture and reduce the water
content of the raw material before pyrolysis. Moisture removal is essential because the
presence of water can interfere with the carbonization process, reduce carbon yield, and affect
the development of porosity in the final activated carbon. After drying, the jaggery powder
was allowed to cool to room temperature and stored in an airtight container until further use
in the pyrolysis process.
4.2.2 Carbonization
After the pre-treatment and drying process, the moisture-free jaggery powder was subjected
to calcination (carbonization) in a furnace. The dried jaggery was placed in an alumina
crucible and heated to a temperature of 400°C at a controlled heating rate. The calcination
process was carried out under limited oxygen conditions to facilitate thermal decomposition
and carbonization of the organic constituents present in jaggery.
At 400°C, the carbohydrates present in jaggery, primarily sucrose, glucose, and fructose,
underwent dehydration and thermal decomposition, leading to the evolution of volatile
compounds and the formation of a carbon-rich solid residue (biochar). The sample was
maintained at 400°C for the desired holding time to ensure complete carbonization. After
completion of the heat treatment, the furnace was allowed to cool naturally to room
temperature, and the carbonized product was collected for further activation and
characterization studies.
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The carbonized material obtained at this stage served as the precursor for the subsequent
activation process aimed at enhancing porosity and surface area.
4.2.3 KOH activation
Following the completion of the carborization process ,the resulting brown and black colored
powder is combined with the potassium hydroxide (KOH) powder and in another case in the
liquid form .this mixture thoroughly mixed to ensure homogeneity.
In order to develop the pore network in carbon materials the application of physical and
chemical is often required ,chemical activation is generally made by mixing carbonaceous
material with chemical reagent (KOH,H3PO4,ZnCl2,etc).
In the case of physical activation no avtivation agents are used .
Among various chemical reagents KOH is widely used , since it can result porous carbon
with defined micropore size distribution,high micropore volume high surface area . the as
prepared metallic K intercalating into the carbon lattice of the carbon matrix during the
activation .results in the expansion of the carbon lattice , after the removal of intercalated
metallic K and other compound of K by washing .
The expanded carbon can not return to their previous nonporous structure and thus the high
microporosity that is necessary.
4.2.4 Pyrolysis
The powder obtained from previous process underwent through a pyrolysis process .this
invoved subjecting the powder to three different temperature conditions -600 °c ,700 °c and
800 °c .under an inert atmosphere for 2 hrs each.as a result of this process a new black powder
was obtained which is cleaned with HCl solution and distilled water several times and
subsequently dried in hot air oven at 60 °c to 70 °c
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References
1.
Gupta, M. et al. (2025). Effects of Pyrolysis Control Parameters on the Structural
Properties of Biomass-Derived Activated Carbon Materials and Their Energy
Applications.
2.
Ukanwa, K.S. et al. (2019). A Review of Chemicals to Produce Activated Carbon from
Agricultural Waste Biomass.
3.
Azeez, M.O. et al. (2023). Review of Biomass-Derived Activated Carbon for Production
of Clean Fuels. Arabian Journal of Chemistry
4.
Mishra, R., Singh, B., & Acharya, B. (2024). A Comprehensive Review on Activated
Carbon from Pyrolysis of Lignocellulosic Biomass. (Manipal Academy)
5.
Ahmad, A.A. et al. (2024). Biomass-Based Activated Carbon. (IntechOpen)
6.
Feng, P. et al. (2020). Biomass-Based Activated Carbon and Activators: Preparation and
Applications. (ACS Publications)
7.
Singh, A. et al. (2019). Interdigitated Flexible Supercapacitor Using Activated Carbon
Synthesized from Biomass. (arXiv)
8.
Mansurov, Z.A. et al. (2022). Production of Activated and Graphene-Like Carbon
Materials from Rice Husk. (arXiv)
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