Effect of Potassium on Date Palm Fronds in the Production of Microwave Induced Alloying

3 Abstract: Tungsten carbide (WC) is an important catalyst that has various catalytic applications. In this study, microwave assisted technique an environmentally friendly method was used to produce WC from waste biomass of date palm fronds. Potassium hydroxide (KOH) was chosen in the treatment of activated carbon formed from the date palm fronds because of its proven effects on microwave induced technique. The date palm frond activated carbon was characterized by TGA and surface area. In this study, the KOH-treated activated carbon was then reacted with tungsten hexacarbonyl precursor in a microwave at 360-630 W specially modified. The product alloy obtained was then characterized using XRD. The result shows the presence of WC which was enhanced by the microwave with increase in KOH concentration. This study further confirm that microwave induce technique can prepare WC for other applications.