Aplications
   
  NBC (Nuclear, Biological and Chemical) warfare protection
  It was the first application of these materials (70's), developed by the Royal Army. In a NBC cloth, this is an inner layer of a sandwich composite, and protects soldiers against chemical and biological arms. Today there are several manufacturers of NBC protective cloth that uses activated carbon cloths.
   
   
   
  Gas Masks
  Normal one-use gas masks protect workers against dust and liquid particles. Gas mask with ACF's have also extra protection against bad-odor and gases (organic and acid) in small concentrations. These masks are the reference product in the today's market.
   
   
   
  Surgical Dressings
 

Developed by J&J in the 80's, the surgical dressings that contains activated carbon cloths showed special properties in the wound care of ulcerous and other bad-odor wounds. Also, if the activated carbon cloth contains silver, has also anti-bacteria and fungicide effect.
   
   
  Link - http://www.worldwidewounds.com/1998/march/Odour-Absorbing-Dressings/odour-absorbing-dressings.html
   
  These dressings are used in both humans and animal wound care and commercialized by some of the most important companies of the sector.
   
  Conservation of precious metals and museum pieces
  ACF's are used as anti-tarnish in showcases and boxes to protect precious metals like silver and in the preservation antiques and museum pieces from pollution contaminants present in air.
   
  Link - http://nt3.magma.ca/cci-icc/bookstore/pdf-documents/n9-7_e.pdf
   
  Air Conditioning and air filtering systems
 

Filters like canisters filled with activated carbon in granular and powder form shows the problem of channeling, desegregation, lower efficiency in dynamic system and high pressure drop. However, the problem of the canisters is solved with cloths, foams and felts that support powdered activated carbon. These products are extensively used in air conditioning systems as molecular filter.
But, what about the following problems of these products?:

  • Less adsorption of contaminants of powder activated carbon in dynamic flows than activated carbon fibers.
  • The binder between the activated carbon and the support fill an important part of the pores, decreasing the adsorption capacity.
  • Only a part of the weight of the filter is effective as molecular filter, being the support weight only structural.

When ACF's are used, all these problems are solved:

  • Higher adsorption rate of pollutants
  • There are not binder
  • All the weight is structural and molecular filter at the same time

For these reasons, the number of companies using 100% activated carbon fabrics is growing up.
   
   
  Liquid filtering
 

ACF's are suitable to be used in liquid filtering systems, in water circulating systems, food industry and medical industry, showing as properties:

  • There are not disagregation, solving the problems of mudding by fines (important in medical and food industry).
  • Lower pressure drop, spelling less energy pumping the liquid across the filter.
  • There are not channeling. The filter do not need over scaling to guarantee the filtration.
   
   
  Catalysts Support
  ACF's are suitable as support of heterogeneous catalysts in the industrial reactions that activated carbon is used as support:

The properties that make ACF's better support than activated carbon:

  • There are not channeling. Catalysts bed in continuous systems has not to be over scaling.
  • Higher rate of adsorption, showing the catalysts higher reaction rate and needing less amount of catalysts and smaller catalyst bed.
  • Lower pressure drop.
  • These properties (smaller catalysts bed and lower pressure drop) also offer the advantage of lower energy cost pumping the fluid.