US EPA

13 

The impact of molecular oxygen on the adsorptive capacity of activated carbon for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was evaluated in the study. Investigations involved VOC solutions in Milli-Q water supplemented with background organic matter (BOM). It was determined that adsorption isotherms for chloroform, chlorobenzene, and dibromo-chloropropane (DBCP) conducted in autoclaved Milli-Q water showed no difference in their adsorption behavior when oxygen was present (oxic condition) or absent (anoxic condition) from the test environment. The presence of BOM reduced the adsoptive capacity of carbon for these compounds. The adsorptive capacity of carbon for the target VOC was further reduced under oxic conditions. The IAST was found to accurately describe anoxic adsorption isotherms for VOCs in BOM. This approach failed to predict this competition for data collected under oxic conditions. 

PB94-198025