Rice husk (RH), a plentiful agricultural by-product with a lightweight nature, presents significant disposal issues, while its conventional burning methods contribute considerably to air pollution. Transforming RH into activated carbon (AC) provides a viable and sustainable route for resource utilization. In this study, AC was synthesized using the double crucible method, which avoids the need for an inert gas atmosphere and offers a cost-effective, environmentally conscious alternative. Acetic acid served as the activating agent, with three activation loadings 1:1, 1:5, and 1:10 were evaluated for their effects on the structural and chemical features of the product. The characterization encompassed the evaluation of surface topology and pore configuration, elucidation of surface functional groups, determination of elemental composition, analysis of crystallinity and phase arrangement, and investigation of internal structural features at the nanoscale. Furthermore, yield determination, proximate analysis to assess fundamental compositional attributes, and ultimate analysis to quantify elemental composition were performed. The 1:10 ratio gave the highest yield (76.4%), whereas the 1:5 ratio produced the most favourable pore development. Structural investigations via XRD and Selected Area Electron Diffraction (SAED) verified the amorphous nature of the material, while EDX confirmed that the 1:5 condition had the greatest carbon weight percentage, making it the optimal activation ratio for producing high-performance AC from RH. These findings highlight the potential of RH-derived AC for environmentally sustainable remediation solutions.