Degradable dual superlyophobic lignocellulosic fibers for high-efficiency oil/water separation

Industrial emissions and oil spills as worldwide challenges have induced severe pollution and threatened the ecological environment. Conventionally, superhydrophobic surfaces show underwater lipophilicity, whereas superhydrophilic surfaces exhibit underwater oleophobicity. However, the intrinsic cha...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Green chemistry : an international journal and green chemistry resource : GC 2020, Vol.22 (2), p.54-512
Main Authors: Kang, Lei, Wang, Bin, Zeng, Jinsong, Cheng, Zheng, Li, Jinpeng, Xu, Jun, Gao, Wenhua, Chen, Kefu
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Air pollution
Dichloroethane
Fibers
Formaldehyde
Gravitation
Gravity
Green chemistry
Hydrophobic surfaces
Hydrophobicity
Industrial emissions
Industrial pollution
Kerosene
Lignocellulose
Lipophilicity
Melamine
Oil spills
Organic chemistry
Plant growth
Separation
Underwater
Wastewater
Water pollution
Water purification
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Summary:Industrial emissions and oil spills as worldwide challenges have induced severe pollution and threatened the ecological environment. Conventionally, superhydrophobic surfaces show underwater lipophilicity, whereas superhydrophilic surfaces exhibit underwater oleophobicity. However, the intrinsic characteristics of these materials limit their practical applications for dealing with industrial oily wastewater. Here, from a chemical point of view, a lignocellulosic fiber surface with superwetting characteristics was successfully fabricated by the strategically adjusted condensation reaction of melamine and formaldehyde, making it underoil superhydrophobic and underwater superoleophobic. The formation of the dual superlyophobic surface in oil/water systems was related to the surface topography and the essential chemistry of the modified lignocellulosic fibers. After being pre-wetted by water, the dual superlyophobic melamine formaldehyde lignocellulosic (DSMFL) fibers were able to separate a light-oil/water mixture by gravity filtration. Simultaneously, the DSMFL fibers were sufficient to separate a heavy-oil/water mixture when they were pre-wetted by a heavy oil under a gravity-driven mechanism. In addition, the DSMFL fibers still showed excellent dual superlyophobicity along with robust chemical stability and had high separation efficiencies for dichloroethane (DCE)/water or kerosene/water mixtures after 50 separation cycles. The effective absorption of the light oil on the upper layer of the aqueous phase exceeded 1000%. Finally, the DSMFL fibers could be degraded into a nitrogen source for plant growth. A degradable dual lignocellulosic fiber with superwetting characteristics was successfully fabricated by a strategically adjusted condensation reaction of melamine and formaldehyde, maintaining high efficiency for oil/water mixture separation.
ISSN:1463-9262
1463-9270
DOI:10.1039/c9gc03861b