Exp) Option a is the correct answer.

Activated carbon is a highly porous material that has an exceptionally large surface area, making it an effective adsorbent. It is widely used to remove pollutants from water and air, particularly in industries dealing with heavy metal contamination, wastewater treatment, and chemical processes.

Statement I is correct: Activated carbon is widely recognized for its effectiveness in environmental applications, particularly in the treatment of industrial effluents and polluted water or air.

• It functions primarily through adsorption, a process in which contaminants adhere to the surface of the carbon material.
• Due to its high efficiency in removing a wide range of pollutants—including dyes, organic compounds, and heavy metals—activated carbon is extensively used in sectors such as chemical manufacturing, textiles, food processing, and water treatment.

Statement II is correct: One of the most important physical properties of activated carbon is its extremely large surface area.

This large surface area is due to its highly porous structure. This large surface area provides numerous active sites for adsorption. This makes it especially useful in removing toxic metals from industrial effluents and contaminated water sources.

Therefore, the features mentioned in this statement are key scientific reasons behind the effectiveness described in Statement I.

Statement III is correct: Activated carbon can be produced from a wide range of carbon-rich waste materials, including agricultural by-products like coconut shells, rice husks, sawdust, sugarcane bagasse, and nutshells.

These materials are subjected to carbonization and activation processes to create the porous structure necessary for adsorption.

This ease of synthesis from waste makes activated carbon accessible and attractive, especially in developing countries and for large-scale industrial applications — thus supporting and explaining the attractiveness mentioned in Statement I.

Conclusion:

All three statements are correct. Both Statement II (which explains the functional mechanism — high surface area and adsorption capacity) and Statement III (which explains the practical and economic benefits — easy synthesis from waste) help in explaining why activated carbon is an attractive tool for pollution control, as stated in Statement I.

Therefore, Both Statement II and Statement III are correct and both of them explain Statement I.

Source: https://www.watertechonline.com/wastewater/article/15549902/the-basics-of-activated-carbon-adsorption

https://egyankosh.ac.in/bitstream/123456789/82824/1/Block-3.pdf