Activated carbon filters are generally used as water treatment or advanced wastewater treatment equipment, primarily to remove suspended solids, organic matter, color, etc. Currently, due to the high cost of activated carbon and the difficulty of regeneration, its practicality is limited. It is ideal to use it when conditions permit. 
(I) Operating Steps
1. The filter media inside the adsorber: a 0.15–0.4 meter high quartz sand layer can be filled at the bottom as a support layer. The quartz sand particles can be 20–40 mm in size. Granular activated carbon can be filled on top of the quartz sand, with a thickness of 1.0–1.5 meters, as the filtration layer.
2. Before loading the filter, the bottom quartz sand filter media should undergo a solution stability test. After soaking for 24 hours, it must meet the following requirements:
(1) The increase in total solids should not exceed 20 mg/L.
(2) The increase in oxygen consumption should not exceed 10 mg/L.
(3) After soaking in an alkaline medium, the increase in silica should not exceed 10 mg/L.
3. After the quartz sand is rinsed clean and loaded into the equipment, it should be carefully cleaned. Water flow should be flushed from top to bottom, with dirty water discharged from the bottom until the effluent is clear. Then, granular activated carbon filter media is loaded and cleaned again, with water flow flushed from bottom to top and dirty water discharged from the top. 
4. When the adsorber is operating, raw water flows in from the top inlet. When excessive contaminants are intercepted and water quality deteriorates, backwashing can be performed. The backwashing frequency can be adjusted based on specific conditions, such as once daily or weekly.
(1) During backwashing, there should be no sand loss.
(2) If the effluent still fails to meet requirements after exceeding the specified backwashing time, the equipment should be inspected and repaired instead of increasing the backwashing speed.
(II) Technical Performance 
1. Working Pressure: ≤0.6 MPa
2. Filtration Speed: ≤10 m/h
3. Backwashing Intensity: 8–10 L/m2·s
4. Backwashing Time: 15 minutes
(III) Equipment Parameters