A breakthrough curve in adsorption is the course of the effluent adsorptive concentration at the outlet of a fixed bed adsorber Breakthrough curves are important for adsorptive separation technologies and for the characterization of porous materials. A breakthrough curve in adsorption is the course of the effluent adsorptive concentration at the outlet of a fixed bed adsorber Breakthrough curves are important for adsorptive separation technologies and for the characterization of porous materials.