The preparation process of synergistic preparation of sludge carbon by oily sludge and walnut shells are divided into two stages: carbonization preparation of a carbon precursor and activation preparation of sludge carbon. The preparation conditions of the carbon precursor are 2.5:1 mass ratio of oily sludge and walnut shells, carbonization temperature is 450°C, and time is 2 h. There are some pores on the surface of the prepared carbon precursor, the heavy metal content of leachate does not exceed the standard, and the use process will not cause heavy metal pollution. Intensive research is carried out on factors affecting the preparation of sludge carbon by activation of the carbon precursor by the orthogonal experiment and single-factor experiment. The optimal activation conditions are determined by using ZnCl2 as an activator, mass ratio of the carbon precursor to ZnCl2 is 1:4, activation temperature is 800°C, heating rate is 15°C/min, and activation holding time is 1 h. The surface of sludge carbon is distributed with many pores, several layers of small pores can be seen deeply in the large holes, and pore size distribution is dominated by micropores and mesopores. BET Specific surface area, pore volume, average pore, and iodine value are 1772.69 m2/g, 1.98 cm3/g, 1.64 nm, and 1011.65 mg/g, respectively, which surpasses commercially available activated carbon comprehensively.

Pyrolytic residues of oily sludge are a kind of hazardous solid waste produced by high-temperature pyrolysis of oily sludge, which still contains a certain amount of mineral oil; improper disposal can cause secondary pollution. In order to reutilize the pyrolytic residues of oily sludge, the pyrolytic carbon in pyrolytic residues is recovered by a combination of physical flotation and chemical separation, and they are used for the treatment of oilfield wastewater and adsorption of oil. The results showed that the purity of the pyrolytic carbon is 95.93%; many pores of different sizes are distributed on the surface, with mainly mesoporous distribution. Specific surface area, pore volume, and average pore diameter reach 454.47 m2/g, 0.61 cm3/g, and 6.91 nm, respectively. Adsorption effect of pyrolytic carbon on COD and oil in oilfield wastewater is better than that of activated carbon at the same condition. With regard to adsorption on diesel and crude oil, the initial instantaneous adsorption rate of pyrolytic carbon is 3.8 times and 1.86 times faster than that of activated carbon, respectively. When pyrolytic carbon reaches saturated adsorption, cumulative adsorption of activated carbon on diesel and crude oil is much lower than that of pyrolytic carbon.