Hasan Talebi - M.Sc. Student of Petroleum University of Technology, Department of Gas Engineering, Ahwaz, Iran
Ahmad Shariati - Assosiate Assistant of Petroleum University of Technology, Department of Gas Engineering, Ahwaz, Iran
Mohammad Reza Khosravi Nikou - Assosiate Assistant of Petroleum University of Technology, Department of Gas Engineering, Ahwaz, Iran
Masoud Aghajani - Assosiate Assistant of Petroleum University of Technology, Department of Gas Engineering, Ahwaz, Iran

A commercial activated carbon, with treatment of HNO₃ was investigated as adsorbents of sulfur solutions prepared of n-decane and same concentrations of dibenzothiophene (DBT) and 4,6-dimethyildibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT) that varied between 400 and 1600 mg/l. To characterize the initial and modified carbons nitrogen adsorption, x-ray diffraction (XRD) and fourier transform(FT-IR) were applied. surface area and pore volumes were significantly enhanced upon HNO₃ treatment and adsorption capacity for sulfur compounds followed the order: AC < AC-HNO₃. Adsorption kinetics and isotherm studies were performed, and the adsorption data fitted well to pseudo second-order model and Langmuir isotherm model.

Adsorption, Activated carbon, Model fuel, HNO₃ treatment, DBT, 4,6-DMDBT, Desulfurization