Patent ID: 7781370

Claim:
A process for producing spherical activated carbon, comprising the steps of: crosslinking and condensing a heavy hydrocarbon oil under an elevated pressure by blowing therein an oxidizing gas alone or in mixture with a non-oxidizing gas to provide a starting pitch, forming the starting pitch into a porous spherical pitch comprising porous spheres of the starting pitch, and infusibilizing, carbonizing and activating the porous spherical pitch to form a spherical activated carbon; wherein said starting pitch has a softening point of at least 150° C., a toluene-insoluble content of at least 40% and a property of retaining isotropy even after being subjected to heating at 430° C. for 1 hour; and wherein the forming step includes suspending and dispersing a molten mixture of the starting pitch with an additive comprising an aromatic compound having a boiling point of at least 200° C. and having two or three rings in hot water to recover a spherical pitch product, and extracting the additive from the spherical pitch product to leave the porous spherical pitch.