🧷 Authentic Classroom Explanation by IAS Monk

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📌 The Question:

Environment & Ecology

Consider the following statements:

Statement I: Activated carbon is a good and an attractive tool to remove pollutants from effluent streams and to remediate contaminants from various industries.

Statement II: Activated carbon exhibits a large surface area and a strong potential for adsorbing heavy metals.

Statement III: Activated carbon can be easily synthesized from environmental wastes with high carbon content.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

(a) Both statement II and Statement III are correct and both of them explain Statement I
(b) Both Statement II and Statement III are correct but only one of them explains Statement I
(c) Only one of the Statements II and III is correct and that explains Statement I
(d) Neither Statement II nor Statement III is correct

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✅ Correct Answer: (a)

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🔍 Curiosity Raiser

How can waste biomass and agricultural residues become one of the most powerful tools for industrial pollution control?

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🌱 Enrich Notes (UPSC Value Add)

• Activated Carbon = Adsorption Champion
• Widely used in:
  • Industrial effluent treatment
  • Drinking water purification
  • Air pollution control
  • Heavy metal remediation
• Raw materials:
  • Coconut shells
  • Wood waste
  • Lignocellulosic biomass
  • Coal-based residues

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🧠 Authentic Classroom Explanation

Statement II — ✔️ Correct

• Activated carbon has:
  • Very large surface area
  • Highly porous (microporous) structure
  • Chemical complexity on surface
• These properties give it strong adsorptive capacity, especially for heavy metals and organic pollutants.

Statement III — ✔️ Correct

• Activated carbon can be synthesized from environmental wastes rich in carbon, such as:
  • Coconut shells
  • Wood
  • Agricultural residues
• Preparation methods:
  • Physical activation
  • Chemical activation
• Ease of synthesis + low-cost raw materials make it economically attractive.

Link to Statement I:

• Because it is highly adsorptive (II) and cheap & easily producible (III), activated carbon becomes an effective and attractive tool for pollutant removal.

✅ Thus, Statements II and III are correct and both explain Statement I.

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🕯️ IAS Monk Whisper

When waste is given structure and surface,
it learns how to cleanse the world.