Acute liver failure (ALF) is a rare, potentially fatal complication of severe hepatic illness. It is a syndrome that triggers a cascade of events, leading to multiple organ failures and often death. The work aimed at demonstrating the usefulness of activated raw date pits and carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRP) in the management of ALF. The activated carbons produced are used for adsorption of albumin bound toxins from the liver of patients with ALF. The liver is not cured, however, patients are given the time they need to find a suitable donor. Initially, date pits are milled and epoxy is removed from the CFRP. Both materials then undergo pyrolysis and activation treatments. The activated carbon fiber (ACF) and powdered activated carbon (PAC) resulting are tested using FTIR and TGA analysis. FTIR spectrums provide information about functional groups present in the samples and TGA graphs illustrate weight loss as treatment temperature increases. From the data analysis carried out, it appears that the process of recycling both; date pits and CFRP was successful. This confirms the ability of PAC and ACFs to adsorb toxins and as potential candidates for consideration in the search for effective treatment options for liver failure.

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This work aims at utilizing natural resources and recycling materials from aircraft industries to enable their usage in medical and purification applications. The main application for which the materials are tested is the adsorption of bilirubin toxin from the liver of end stage liver failure patients. The two materials of concern are date seeds and carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRP). Samples of the materials will be treated to produce activated carbon (AC). Following the preparation of the ACs and chitosan coated ACs, tests are carried out to compare uncoated ACs with chitosan coated ACs. FTIR spectroscopy, TGA, DSC and a Spectrophotometer are utilized in order to characterize the samples obtained. From the data acquired, it is concluded that the chitosan coated ACs have better adsorption than the uncoated ACs. The activated carbon fibers showed the highest efficiency for the adsorption of bilirubin toxin. At an adsorbent dose of 0.8 gm, findings show that 98.4% of bilirubin toxin is adsorbed in samples where ACF is used as the adsorbent while 96.5% remained in samples where DPAC was used as the adsorbent.

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