activated carbon

American  

noun

Chemistry.

1. a form of carbon having very fine pores: used chiefly for adsorbing gases or solutes, as in various filter systems for purification, deodorization, and decolorization.

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activated carbon British  

noun

1. Also called: activated charcoal.   active carbon.  a porous highly adsorptive form of carbon used to remove colour or impurities from liquids and gases, in the separation and extraction of chemical compounds, and in the recovery of solvents

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Etymology

Origin of activated carbon

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

In June of this year, Nestle Waters was fined more than $610,000 in Switzerland for having used activated carbon filters on its Henniez bottled mineral water.

From Barron's • Nov. 18, 2025

“The most studied filtration method for this is activated carbon adsorption,” Campbell said.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 22, 2024

Adsorption with clay materials, activated carbon, iron oxide and natural materials such as coffee grounds, has also been used before and exhibit high cationic dye uptake, exchanging ions or forming bonds.

From Science Daily • Oct. 10, 2023

Filters containing activated carbon or reverse osmosis membranes can remove the compounds.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 5, 2023

In 2006, the town of Oakdale, Minnesota, added an activated carbon treatment step to its water system.

From Salon • Mar. 19, 2023