Removal of emulsified oil from water by inverse fluidization of hydrophobic aerogels

Stearic acid-modified hollow hydroxyapatite particles with enhanced hydrophobicity for oil adsorption from oil spills

Oil spills lead to a substantial depletion of aquatic biodiversity. The mitigation of an oil spill can entail considerable financial outlays, give rise to consequential environmental impacts, and present formidable operational complexities. In this research, hollow hydroxyapatite particles with enhanced oil adsorption characteristics were prepared by surface modification with stearic acid. Peanut and vacuum pump oils were used to imitate oil spills and conduct adsorption tests. The 50% stearic acid-modified hydroxyapatite (Sa/HAP) adsorbent showed superior hydrophobic properties with respect to water contact angle data. Adsorption isotherm analysis revealed that the adsorption processes of peanut and vacuum pump oils matched well with the Sips isotherm model, with regression coefficients of 0.992 and 0.996, respectively. The oil adsorption by the modified hydroxyapatite (HAP) adsorbent was found to be 9.85 g·g-1 for peanut oil and 12.13 g·g-1 for vacuum pump oil. Furthermore, the adsorption kinetics performance was determined by chemical interaction, whereas the adsorption equilibrium capacities were 8.97 g·g-1 and 11.41 g·g-1, respectively. Recycling of the spent adsorbent was performed with toluene stripping. The synthesized oil-adsorbents were analyzed by SEM, FTIR, XRD, contact angle, and TGA analyses. Hence, the efficacy of the Sa/HAP material as a potential adsorbent for the purification of oil-contaminated water was established, attributed to its commendable oil adsorption capability.

Bio-Based Aerogels for the Removal of Heavy Metal Ions and Oils from Water: Novel Solutions for Environmental Remediation

Contamination of the aqueous environment caused by the presence of heavy metal ions and oils is a growing concern that must be addressed to reduce their detrimental impact on living organisms and safeguard the environment. Recent efficient and environmentally friendly remediation methods for the treatment of water are based on third-generation bioaerogels as emerging applications for the removal of heavy metal ions and oils from aqueous systems. The peculiarities of these materials are various, considering their high specific surface area and low density, together with a highly porous three-dimensional structure and tunable surface chemistry. This review illustrates the recent progress in aerogels developed from cellulose and chitosan as emerging materials in water treatment. The potential of aerogel-based adsorbents for wastewater treatment is reported in terms of adsorption efficacy and reusability. Despite various gaps affecting the manufacturing and production costs of aerogels that actually limit their successful implementation in the market, the research progress suggests that bio-based aerogels are ready to be used in water-treatment applications in the near future.

Polyethylene over magnetite-multiwalled carbon nanotubes for kerosene removal from water

In this study, a nano-adsorbent was prepared for kerosene removal from water. Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were functionalized with concentrated HNO₃ (nitric acid). Subsequently, Fe₃O₄ (magnetite) nanoparticles were deposited on the MWCNTs to prepare a magnetite/MWCNTs (Fe-MWCNTs) nanocomposite. Then, polyethylene was added to the Fe-MWCNTs to fabricate a polyethylene/magnetite/MWCNTs (PE/Fe-MWCNTs) novel nanocomposite. The nano-adsorbent was characterized using BET, FTIR, Raman, XRD, TEM, and SEM. A kerosene-water model mixture was used for adsorption tests. Several parameters: adsorption time, adsorbent dose, solution pH, solution temperature, and kerosene concentration in the kerosene-water model mixture, were analyzed during adsorption experiments. After each batch experiment, kerosene concentration was determined using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Magnetic field was used to remove the adsorbent after each experiment. The kerosene adsorption capacity and removal efficiency of the PE/Fe-MWCNTs nanocomposite (3560 mg/g and 71.2 %, respectively) were higher than those of Fe-MWCNTs, ox-MWCNTs, and fresh MWCNTs (3154 mg/g and 63.1 %, 2204 mg/g and 44.0 %, and 2092 mg/g and 41.8 %, respectively). Kerosene adsorption followed a pseudo-second-order kinetic model (R² = 0.999) and the Langmuir isotherm model, suggesting that adsorption was uniform and homogenous process.

Effective and sustainable adsorbent materials for oil spill cleanup based on a multistage desalination process

Oil spills, which are often caused by crude oil transportation accidents, contaminate coastal waters and land and can harm aquatic life, seabirds, humans, and the entire ecosystem. Ocean currents and wind complicate oil spill cleanup and extend the oil spill area. This study proposes a new approach to control oil spills using solids recovered from the treatment of reject brine through a novel multistage desalination process. The aim is to produce applicable adsorbent for oil spill cleanup especially in the final cleaning stages. The multistage desalination process is based on the electrochemical treatment of high-salinity reject brine and Solvay and modified Solvay liquid effluents in a closed Plexiglas electrocoagulation cell. After the electrochemical treatment, the collected solids were dried and ground for utilization as adsorbents in oil spill cleanup. Results were promising for the adsorbent produced from the electrochemical treatment of the modified Solvay effluent. A maximum adsorption capacity of 2.8 g oil/g adsorbent was achieved, with an oil recovery of 98%. In addition, the regenerated solids after toluene extraction process were recycled and achieved an adsorption capacity of 2.1 g oil/g adsorbent in the second oil spill clean-up cycle. The structural and chemical characteristics of the adsorbents produced from the multistage desalination process were investigated using X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Results support the adoption of the collected solids as effective oil-adsorbent materials.

Treatment and reclamation of hydrocarbon-bearing oily wastewater as a hazardous pollutant by different processes and technologies: a state-of-the-art review

Hydrocarbon-containing oily wastewater generated by various industries creates a major environmental problem all over the world since petroleum products are commonly used as energy sources and raw materials in various industries. In case of offshore/coastal oil recovery operations, produced water is discharged through either shore side outfalls or coastal rim releases. In many cases, current disposal practices leads to severe environmental pollution by contamination of petroleum hydrocarbon to the surface, ground, and coastal waterways. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the performance of various processes for the recovery of petroleum hydrocarbons from wastewater. In this paper, a detailed review on the different separation/treatment processes of oily wastewater is presented. Previous and recent research works are reviewed in the area of oil-water separation from wastewater and also highlight the new developments in these areas. Various separation processes and technologies such as gravity separation, flotation process, membrane process, adsorption process, biological treatment, freeze/thaw process, and photocatalytic oxidation process (PoPs)/advanced oxidation processes (AoPs) are discussed and reviewed. The adsorption properties of a wide variety of porous sorbent materials in oily wastewater treatment, particularly in the area of oil spill cleanup, are also reviewed. The advantages and disadvantages of each process are critically discussed and compared.

Removal of dissolved toluene in underground water with nanowires of manganese oxide

The objective of the present study was to investigate the adsorption behavior of manganese oxide nanowires as an adsorbent for the removal of dissolved toluene from underground water. The nanowire membrane, composed of three-dimensional porous nanostructures plus superhydrophobic character, is very suitable for removal of the hydrophobic molecules. The effects of adsorbent dose, contact time, initial solution concentration, pH, salinity, and recyclability on the uptake of toluene by the adsorbent in batch mode are examined. The adsorption data compared to the adsorption of two kinds of activated carbons show that manganese oxide nanowire is competitive to activated carbons. Furthermore, the equilibrium data are fitted to different types of adsorption isotherms. Freundlich isotherm model illustrated the best fit to the data. The results of this study suggest that nanowires of manganese oxides can be used as a low cost, highly efficient adsorbent for the removal of dissolved hydrocarbon from aqueous solution.

Enhancing oil removal from water by immobilizing multi-wall carbon nanotubes on the surface of polyurethane foam

A surface modification method was carried out to enhance the light crude oil sorption capacity of polyurethane foam (PUF) through immobilization of multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) on the foam surface at various concentrations. The developed sorbent was characterized using scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and tensile elongation test. The results obtained from thermogravimetric and tensile elongation tests showed the improvement of thermal and mechanical resistance of surface-modified foam. The experimental data also revealed that the immobilization of MWCNT on PUF surface enhanced the sorption capacity of light crude oil and reduced water sorption. The highest oil removal capacity was obtained for 1 wt% MWCNT on PUF surface which was 21.44% enhancement in light crude oil sorption compared to the blank PUF. The reusability of surface modified PUF was determined through four cycles of chemical regeneration using petroleum ether. The adsorption of light crude oil with 30 g initial mass showed that 85.45% of the initial oil sorption capacity of this modified sorbent was remained after four regeneration cycles. Equilibrium isotherms for adsorption of oil were analyzed by the Freundlich, Langmuir, Temkin, and Redlich-Peterson models through linear and non-linear regression methods. Results of equilibrium revealed that Langmuir isotherm is the best fitting model and non-linear method is a more accurate way to predict the parameters involved in the isotherms. The overall findings suggested the promising potentials of the developed sorbent in order to be efficiently used in large-scale oil spill cleanup.

Removal of oil droplets from water using carbonized rice husk: enhancement by surface modification using polyethylenimine

Carbonized rice husk (CRH) is a promising material to separate oil from water owing to its abundance, low-cost, and environmentally benign characteristics. However, CRH's performance is somewhat limited by its similar surface charge to that of oil, leading to repulsive interactions. To improve the separation efficiency of CRH, CRH was modified via impregnation with a cationic biocompatible polymer, polyethlyenimine (PEI) to form PEI-CRH. The modified sample exhibits a remarkably higher (10-50 times) oil/water (O/W) separation efficiency than that of the unmodified one. Small PEI-CRH particles (about 64 μm) are found to adsorb oil droplets faster and larger quantities than bigger particles (about 113 and 288 μm). PEI-CRH exhibits higher separation efficiency at high temperatures owing to the destabilization of the emulsion. It is also found that the oil adsorption mechanism involves a chemical interaction between PEI-CRH and oil droplets. The addition of NaCl considerably improves the separation efficiency, while the addition of a cationic surfactant has the opposite effect. In acidic emulsions, PEI-CRH adsorbs more oil than in neutral or basic conditions owing to favorable attractive forces between oil droplets and the surface of PEI-CRH. PEI-CRH can be easily regenerated by washing with ethanol. These promising features of PEI-CRH indicate that PEI-CRH could be an efficient and low-cost adsorbent for the O/W separation applications.

Synthesis and characterization of cubic mesoporous bridged polysilsesquioxane for removing organic pollutants from water

Hexane, octane, phenyl, and biphenyl-bridged bis(triethoxysilyl) precursors were used in synthesizing cubic mesoporous bridged polysilsesquioxane (BPS) copolymers. Structural characterization was carried out by FTIR, small angle XRD, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller-N2 sorption, (1)H NMR, and TEM. We successfully synthesized both "rigid" and "soft" 3D cubic mesoporous BPS with high surface area and pore volume, as attested by the comprehensive characterization data. Adsorption of pyrene, phenanthrene, nitrobenzene, and 2,4-dichlorophenol on BPS was greatly affected by adsorbate properties, i.e., Kow, solvation properties and molecular size. Hydrophobic interaction dominantly controlled organic pollutants' sorption on BPS. Other interactions, e.g., π-π and H-bond interactions, also have effects on sorption as indicated by Kow normalized sorption isotherms. Rigid aromatic BPS (phenyl and biphenyl) showed a higher sorption capacity than soft aliphatic BPS (hexane and octane). A conceptual model was proposed to further explain the phenomena. This study suggests a promising application of cubic mesoporous BPS in wastewater treatment.