Definitions:
Once Activated, carbon becomes saturated and turns into spent carbon having lost its absorption characteristics and can’t be used in filtration system and in order to bring it back to its original form and make it reactivated for reuse there is a process called carbon regeneration. Four methods have been developed for this purpose:
Steam regeneration
As name suggests, steam is used to remove contaminant substances from inactivated carbon turning it once again into activated carbon that can be used in place of new virgin carbon.
Thermal regeneration
In this process saturated inactivated carbon is heated to about 800 deg. C temperature in a controlled atmosphere burning off and removing the absorbed contaminant organic substances from it thereby returning it back into reactivated carbon which can be used in place of new virgin carbon.
Chemical regeneration
In this process absorbed organic substances are removed by chemicals.
Biological Regeneration
This process of regeneration has not yet been applied on an industrial scale.
