The adsorption of pollutants on activated carbon can be more effective in either acidic or basic environments, depending on the specific pollutant being targeted. Generally, acidic environments are more effective for adsorbing basic pollutants, while basic environments are more effective for adsorbing acidic pollutants. This is due to the electrostatic interactions between the activated carbon surface and the pollutant molecules.Experimental Design:Objective: To determine the effectiveness of activated carbon in adsorbing pollutants in acidic and basic environments.Materials:1. Activated carbon2. Pollutant samples one acidic pollutant, e.g., phenol, and one basic pollutant, e.g., aniline 3. pH buffer solutions pH 3, 7, and 11 4. Glass beakers5. Magnetic stirrer and stir bars6. Analytical balance7. Filtration setup filter paper, funnel, and flask 8. UV-Vis spectrophotometer or HPLC High-Performance Liquid Chromatography for pollutant analysisProcedure:1. Prepare three sets of glass beakers, each containing 100 mL of pH buffer solutions at pH 3, 7, and 11.2. Add a known concentration of the acidic pollutant e.g., phenol to one set of beakers and a known concentration of the basic pollutant e.g., aniline to the other set of beakers.3. Weigh out equal amounts of activated carbon e.g., 1 g and add it to each beaker.4. Place the beakers on a magnetic stirrer and add stir bars. Stir the solutions at a constant speed for a predetermined time e.g., 2 hours to ensure equilibrium is reached.5. After the stirring period, filter the solutions using a filtration setup to separate the activated carbon from the liquid.6. Analyze the filtrate using a UV-Vis spectrophotometer or HPLC to determine the remaining concentration of the pollutants in each solution.7. Calculate the adsorption efficiency for each pollutant at different pH values using the formula:Adsorption efficiency % = [ Initial concentration - Final concentration / Initial concentration] x 1008. Compare the adsorption efficiencies of the acidic and basic pollutants in the different pH environments to determine which environment is more effective for each pollutant.9. Plot the results in a graph, with pH values on the x-axis and adsorption efficiency on the y-axis, to visualize the relationship between pH and adsorption effectiveness for each pollutant.By following this experimental design, we can determine the effectiveness of activated carbon in adsorbing pollutants in acidic and basic environments and identify the optimal conditions for each pollutant.