Difference Between Activated Charcoal and Regular Charcoal

What is Activated Charcoal?

Activated charcoal, sometimes referred to as activated carbon, is a type of charcoal that has been processed to increase its absorbency. To create activated charcoal, regular charcoal is heated with a gas that causes the charcoal to expand, creating a porous surface that has more binding sites for chemicals.

This activation process increases the surface area of the charcoal significantly compared to regular charcoal, giving it a much greater ability to bind to substances. Whereas regular charcoal may have a surface area of up to 300 square meters per gram, activated charcoal can have a surface area of 500 to 2,000 square meters per gram.

Because of its enhanced absorbent properties, activated charcoal has a variety of medical and industrial applications. It is commonly used to treat poisoning and drug overdoses, filter water, purify air, and even create art supplies like charcoal pencils.

Medical Uses of Activated Charcoal

In emergency medicine, activated charcoal is sometimes used as a poison treatment. It binds to chemicals in the digestive tract, preventing their absorption into the bloodstream. This helps limit their toxic effects.

Activated charcoal is especially useful for acute poisoning by drugs and chemicals that can be harmful in small amounts, including:

• Alcohol
• Pesticides
• Mercury
• Lead
• Some prescription medications, like antidepressants

It's important to administer activated charcoal quickly after the poisoning occurs. The sooner it is given, the more toxin it can bind to in the gut before it gets absorbed.

Activated charcoal is available as a liquid, powder, or capsule. In the ER or hospital setting, it may be given through a tube placed directly into the stomach.

In addition to acute poisoning, activated charcoal is sometimes used to reduce intestinal gas and treat bile flow problems during pregnancy.

However, activated charcoal also binds to many important nutrients, and long-term or repeated use can lead to nutritional deficiencies.

Water Filtration Uses

Activated charcoal is exceptionally good at adsorbing organic compounds from water. Many municipal water treatment facilities use activated carbon filters to remove contaminants like pesticides, solvents, and industrial waste.

This treatment method is known as activated carbon adsorption.

Activated charcoal is also popular as an at-home water filter. Some people keep activated charcoal filters in their refrigerators or use pitchers with built-in charcoal filters.

These types of "Brita-like" filters work well to improve the taste and odor of water by removing chlorine and small contaminants like mold or bacteria. However, they do not filter out minerals, metals, or major contaminants in drinking water.

Air Purification

Much like with water filtration, activated carbon adsorption is also effective for trapping volatile organic compounds (VOCs), pesticides, and other pollutants from the air. Activated charcoal air filters help purify the air indoors and are commonly used in commercial buildings, laboratories, offices, and hospitals.

Using activated charcoal in air filters traps chemicals and odors, leaving clean, purified air.

Other Uses

Some other common uses of activated charcoal include:

• Filters for gas masks
• Compost
• Mold clean-up
• Teeth whitening products
• Skin care products
• Air fresheners and deodorizers
• Art supplies like charcoal pencils and black watercolor

What is Regular Charcoal?

Regular charcoal, sometimes called black charcoal, is simply wood that has been burned at high temperatures in conditions with low oxygen. This carbonizes the wood, driving off water and volatile compounds.

Regular charcoal is primarily made of carbon, with trace amounts of hydrogen and oxygen. It is brittle and black in color.

The most common types of charcoal are:

• Lump charcoal - Made from natural wood sources like oak, hickory, maple, and mesquite. It has an irregular shape and texture.
• Briquettes - Made from compressed sawdust and other wood byproducts. Briquettes are uniformly shaped for even burning.
• Extruded charcoal - Made by forcing softened charred wood through a shaped die to create consistent rods or sticks.
• Charcoal pencils - Fine charcoal powder combined with a gum or wax binder and molded into sticks for drawing.
• Sugar charcoal - Made by charring sugar cane or starch in a kiln.

Because it is so porous, regular charcoal has some absorbent properties. However, it has a much lower surface area than activated charcoal, giving it far less absorptive capacity.

Cooking & Grilling

One of the most widely known uses of regular charcoal is as a cooking and grilling fuel. Lump charcoal and briquettes impart a desirable smokey flavor to grilled meats, vegetables, and other foods.

Charcoal grills are popular for backyard barbecuing. Professional chefs also use special charcoal ovens to smoke or char meat and other ingredients.

Compared to gas grills, charcoal grills can reach much higher temperatures for searing food and caramelizing the surface. Many people prefer the charred, crispy texture that cooking over charcoal imparts.

Lump charcoal lights quickly and burns hotter than briquettes, but it burns out faster. Briquettes provide a longer-lasting and more even heat.

Filtration

While not as effective as activated charcoal, regular charcoal can also be used as a filter to adsorb toxins and improve water quality. Simple charcoal filters have been used since ancient times.

Regular charcoal filters are still sometimes used to filter drinking water and remove contaminants like chlorine. However, activated charcoal works much better for this application.

Regular charcoal is also an ingredient in some soaps and skin products, where it can help trap toxins and chemicals.

Smelting & Foundries

In industrial foundries and smelters, charcoal is used as a source of carbon for reducing metals from their oxides. For example, smelting iron ore with charcoal produces metallic iron.

High temperatures are required, often over 1000°C.

Historically, charcoal was a vital fuel for iron and steel production from the Middle Ages through the early 20th century. It has since been replaced by coke, a porous but harder fuel made from coal.

Artists' Medium

Powdered charcoal mixed with gum arabic or a wax binder produces sticks of artists' charcoal used for drawing. Charcoal produces bold, dark lines and shading on paper.

Charcoal is prized by artists for its soft, crumbly texture that readily smudges for shading effects. It also erases cleanly.

Artists can precisely control charcoal's darkness and gradations by carefully smudging and erasing.

Compressed charcoal sticks wrapped in paper called charcoal pencils are also popular for sketching.

Other Uses

Some other uses of regular charcoal include:

• Soil amendment or conditioner for gardens
• Black powder pigment
• Teeth whitening powder
• Charred wood for artisanal crafts
• Reducing agent in industrial metallurgy
• Filtration substrate at aquariums or ponds
• Fire starters

Key Differences Between Activated Charcoal & Regular Charcoal

Now that we've reviewed the unique properties and uses of activated charcoal versus regular charcoal, let's summarize some of the key differences:

1. Absorbency

The biggest difference is that activated charcoal is much more porous and absorptive than regular charcoal. Activated charcoal possesses a complex network of pores and an incredibly high surface area that gives it powerful adsorption properties.

Regular charcoal has significantly lower surface area and porosity, limiting its absorbency.

2. Manufacturing

Activated charcoal undergoes a special activation process to increase its surface area. Regular charcoal is simply burned without activation.

Activation makes activated charcoal much more absorptive than charcoal produced through traditional charring methods.

3. Color

Activated charcoal is usually black. Regular charcoal can range from black to grayish in color depending on the wood source and whether an additive was used.

The pure black color of activated charcoal is a good indicator that it has high porosity.

4. Hardness

Regular charcoal tends to be harder and more brittle than activated charcoal. Briquettes are especially hard because they have been compressed.

Activated charcoal is lightweight and somewhat fragile. It produces a black powder if crushed or pulverized.

5. Porosity

Up close, activated charcoal has an extremely porous, sponge-like texture, while regular charcoal still retains some of the original plant cell structure from the wood.

This complex porous structure is what makes activated carbon so effective at adsorption.

6. Reactivity

Activated charcoal is inert, meaning it does not react chemically with the compounds it adsorbs. This makes it safe for many applications.

Regular charcoal can be reactive in some cases, such as using it as a reducing agent during metal processing.

7. Applications

Activated charcoal has important medical and scientific applications that take advantage of its highly absorptive properties. Regular charcoal is more commonly used for fuel, art, and industrial processes.

There is some overlap, such as filtration, tooth whitening products, etc. But activated charcoal works far better for purifying air and water thanks to its extreme porosity.

Is Activated Charcoal Just Really Good at Being Charcoal?

Based on its name, some people assume that activated charcoal is just an ultra high-performance version of regular charcoal. But this isn't really the case.

It's true that the starting material for both regular charcoal and activated charcoal is some form of organic matter burned and carbonized under high heat, like wood, coal, peat, coconut shells, or sawdust.

However, the production process for activated charcoal includes an extra activation step specifically designed to increase its pore network and surface area dramatically. This activation process creates a matrix of micro-pores and nano-pores throughout the carbon atoms.

So activated charcoal isn't just an amped-up or purified form of regular charcoal. Rather, it is produced using a different process to achieve very unique properties.

Of course, you can make higher or lower quality versions of both regular and activated charcoal depending on the source material and production techniques used. But activated charcoal, by definition, has gone through chemical or physical activation to make it more porous.

Conclusion

In summary, while activated charcoal and regular charcoal may seem similar at first glance, they have very distinct properties, manufacturing methods, and applications.

The key distinguishing feature of activated charcoal is its expansive micro-porosity and nano-porosity achieved through an activation process. This gives activated charcoal an extremely high surface area and excellent adsorption capacity compared to regular charcoal.

Activated charcoal is specially produced for purification and filtration applications that rely on a highly absorbent material. Meanwhile, regular charcoal maintains the original plant cell structure to a higher degree, making it preferable for fuel, art uses, and some industrial processes.

Understanding the unique features, uses, and production methods of activated charcoal vs. regular charcoal can help you select the right type of charcoal for your needs.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.