Abstract—In this study, the characteristics of methane adsorption using rice husk ash adsorbent (RHA) on structures and physical properties were investigated. The RHA was modified using metal oxides to improve the structural and physical properties as well as to enhance the methane adsorption and desorption performances. Two types of metal oxides were selected which are silver oxide (Ag
2O) and magnesium oxide (MgO). The structural properties of modified and unmodified RHA samples were characterized using X – Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) images. Meanwhile, Brunauer, Emmet, Teller (BET) surface area measurement and Thermogravimetric Analyzer (TGA) were used to characterize the physical properties of modified and unmodified RHA samples. The effects of concentrations and type of metal oxides on RHA were investigated. Results showed that metal oxide loading greatly affect the RHA structural and physical characteristics. Meanwhile, SEM results showed that the presence of metal oxide in the surfaces of the RHA results in well – developed porosity. The XRD patterns of metal oxide modified RHA showed the presence of new diffraction peaks, which indicates the attachment of metal oxide in the RHA and the structure of RHA was also maintained after modification. For physical characteristics, the results showed increased in metal oxide concentrations increased the specific surface area of the modified RHA. The TGA results showed that the weight of modified RHA decreased due to the decomposition of hemicellulose and lignin. Finally, the results concluded that the modification of RHA using Ag
2O have improved the structural and physical characteristics of RHA as an adsorbent. Hence, metal oxide modified RHA can be a promising candidate to enhance the methane adsorption and desorption capacities in a natural gas storage system.
Index Terms—Rice husk ash, metal oxide, methane storage, adsorbent, agro waste.
Nur Hashimah Alias, Nurul Aimi Ghazali, Tengku Amran Tengku Mohd, and Arina Sauki are with the Department of Oil and Gas Engineering Department, Faculty of Chemical Engineering, UiTM, Malaysia (e-mail: nurhashimahalias@gmail.com).
Shareena Fairuz Abd Manaf is with the Department of Bioprocess Engineering, Faculty of Chemical Engineering, UiTM, Malaysia.
Nur Azrini Ramlee is with the Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Chemical Engineering, UiTM, Malaysia.
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Cite: Nur Hashimah Alias, Nurul Aimi Ghazali, Tengku Amran Tengku Mohd, Shareena Fairuz Abd Manaf, Nur Azrini Ramlee, and Arina Sauki, "Modified Agro Waste Rice Husk Ash as Adsorbent for Natural Gas Storage System," International Journal of Chemical Engineering and Applications vol. 7, no. 5, pp. 348-352, 2016.
