Tires play an important role in the automobile industry. However, their disposal when worn out has adverse effects on the environment. The main aim of this study was to prepare activated carbon from waste tire pyrolysis char by impregnating KOH onto pyrolytic char. Adsorption studies on lead onto chemically activated carbon were carried out using response surface methodology. The effect of process parameters such as temperature (°C), adsorbent dosage (g/100 ml), pH, contact time (minutes) and initial lead concentration (mg/l) on the adsorption capacity were investigated. It was found out that the adsorption capacity increased with an increase in adsorbent dosage, contact time, pH, and decreased with an increase in lead concentration and temperature. Optimization of the process variables was done using a numerical optimization method. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectra (FTIR) analysis, X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and scanning electron microscope were used to characterize the pyrolytic carbon char before and after activation. The numerical optimization analysis results showed that the maximum adsorption capacity of

93.176 mg/g was obtained at adsorbent dosage of 0.97 g/100 ml, pH 7, contact time of 115.27 min, initial metal concentration of 100 mg/and temperature of 25°C. FTIR and TGA analysis showed the presence of oxygen containing functional groups on the surface of the activated carbon produced and that the weight loss during the activation step was negligible.

Internet of Things (IoT) will play an important role in modern communication systems. Thousands of devices will talk to each other at the same time. Clearly, smart and efficient hardware will play a vital role in the development of IoT. In this context, the importance of antennas increases due to them being essential parts of communication networks. For IoT applications, a small size with good matching and over a wide frequency range is preferred to ensure reduced size of communication devices. In this paper, we propose a structure and discuss design optimization of a wideband antenna for IoT applications. The antenna consists of a stepped-impedance feed line, a rectangular radiator and a ground plane. The objective is to minimize the antenna footprint by simultaneously adjusting all geometry parameters and to maintain the electrical characteristic of antenna at an acceptable level. The obtained design exhibits dimensions of only 3.7 mm × 11.8 mm and a footprint of 44 mm2, an omnidirectional radiation pattern, and an excellent pattern stability. The proposed antenna can be easily handled within compact communication devices. The simulation results are validated through measurements of the fabricated antenna prototype.