Self-driven one-step oil removal from oil spill on water via selective-wettability steel mesh.

Marine oil spills seriously endanger sea ecosystems and coastal environments, resulting in a loss of energy resources. Environmental and economic demands emphasize the need for new methods of effectively separating oil-water mixtures, while collecting oil content at the same time. A new surface-tension-driven, gravity-assisted, one-step, oil-water separation method is presented for sustained filtration and collection of oil from a floating spill. A benchtop prototype oil collection device uses selective-wettability (superhydrophobic and superoleophilic) stainless steel mesh that attracts the floating oil, simultaneously separating it from water and collecting it in a container, requiring no preseparation pumping or pouring. The collection efficiencies for oils with wide ranging kinematic viscosities (0.32-70.4 cSt at 40 °C) are above 94%, including motor oil and heavy mineral oil. The prototype device showed high stability and functionality over repeated use, and can be easily scaled for efficient cleanup of large oil spills on seawater. In addition, a brief consolidation of separation requirements for oil-water mixtures of various oil densities is presented to demonstrate the versatility of the material system developed herein.

[1]  Lei Jiang,et al.  Special wettable materials for oil/water separation , 2014 .

[2]  R. Frost,et al.  Porous Materials for Oil Spill Cleanup: A Review of Synthesis and Absorbing Properties , 2003 .

[3]  Lim Wei Yap,et al.  Ultralow-density copper nanowire aerogel monoliths with tunable mechanical and electrical properties , 2013 .

[4]  N. Chen,et al.  Versatile fabrication of ultralight magnetic foams and application for oil-water separation. , 2013, ACS nano.

[5]  Kazuki Nakanishi,et al.  Facile synthesis of marshmallow-like macroporous gels usable under harsh conditions for the separation of oil and water. , 2013, Angewandte Chemie.

[6]  Doris Vollmer,et al.  Candle Soot as a Template for a Transparent Robust Superamphiphobic Coating , 2012, Science.

[7]  Haitao Zhu,et al.  Evaluation of electrospun polyvinyl chloride/polystyrene fibers as sorbent materials for oil spill cleanup. , 2011, Environmental science & technology.

[8]  Ronald M. Atlas,et al.  Petroleum biodegradation and oil spill bioremediation , 1995 .

[9]  Jinlong Song,et al.  A simple immersion approach for fabricating superhydrophobic Mg alloy surfaces , 2013 .

[10]  Feng Shi,et al.  A functionally integrated device for effective and facile oil spill cleanup. , 2011, Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids.

[11]  T. Darmanin,et al.  Superhydrophobic Surfaces by Electrochemical Processes , 2013, Advanced materials.

[12]  O. A. Salman,et al.  Viscosity of crude oil blends , 1987 .

[13]  Lin Feng,et al.  Integrated oil separation and water purification by a double-layer TiO2-based mesh , 2013 .

[14]  Zhiguang Guo,et al.  Superhydrophobic copper mesh films with rapid oil/water separation properties by electrochemical deposition inspired from butterfly wing , 2013 .

[15]  Lei Jiang,et al.  Zeolite-coated mesh film for efficient oil–water separation , 2013 .

[16]  Gabriel Gasque,et al.  Small molecule drug screening in Drosophila identifies the 5HT2A receptor as a feeding modulation target , 2013, Scientific Reports.

[17]  J. Zhai,et al.  Photo-induced water–oil separation based on switchable superhydrophobicity–superhydrophilicity and underwater superoleophobicity of the aligned ZnO nanorod array-coated mesh films , 2012 .

[18]  Lin Feng,et al.  Structured cone arrays for continuous and effective collection of micron-sized oil droplets from water , 2013, Nature Communications.

[19]  P. McGinn,et al.  A facile method to functionalize engineering solid membrane supports for rapid and efficient oil–water separation , 2013 .

[20]  Gareth H. McKinley,et al.  Designing Superoleophobic Surfaces , 2007, Science.

[21]  Mei Li,et al.  Filter paper with selective absorption and separation of liquids that differ in surface tension. , 2010, ACS applied materials & interfaces.

[22]  Qing Zhu,et al.  Facile Removal and Collection of Oils from Water Surfaces through Superhydrophobic and Superoleophilic Sponges , 2011 .

[23]  Yen Wei,et al.  Straightforward oxidation of a copper substrate produces an underwater superoleophobic mesh for oil/water separation. , 2013, Chemphyschem : a European journal of chemical physics and physical chemistry.

[24]  Lei Jiang,et al.  Bio-inspired superoleophobic and smart materials: Design, fabrication, and application , 2013 .

[25]  Lei Jiang,et al.  A Novel Superhydrophilic and Underwater Superoleophobic Hydrogel‐Coated Mesh for Oil/Water Separation , 2011, Advanced materials.

[26]  Yajun Zhang,et al.  Magnetically directed clean-up of underwater oil spills through a functionally integrated device , 2013 .

[27]  Xiaotao Zhu,et al.  Robust and durable superhydrophobic cotton fabrics for oil/water separation. , 2013, ACS applied materials & interfaces.

[28]  Lei Jiang,et al.  A super-hydrophobic and super-oleophilic coating mesh film for the separation of oil and water. , 2004, Angewandte Chemie.

[29]  Bin Ding,et al.  Subtle regulation of the micro- and nanostructures of electrospun polystyrene fibers and their application in oil absorption. , 2012, Nanoscale.

[30]  Lei Jiang,et al.  Nanowire‐Haired Inorganic Membranes with Superhydrophilicity and Underwater Ultralow Adhesive Superoleophobicity for High‐Efficiency Oil/Water Separation , 2013, Advanced materials.

[31]  L. Wågberg,et al.  Ultra porous nanocellulose aerogels as separation medium for mixtures of oil/water liquids , 2012, Cellulose.

[32]  B. Ding,et al.  Facile control of intra-fiber porosity and inter-fiber voids in electrospun fibers for selective adsorption. , 2012, Nanoscale.

[33]  R. R. Lessard,et al.  The Significance of Oil Spill Dispersants , 2000 .

[34]  Ilker S. Bayer,et al.  Magnetically driven floating foams for the removal of oil contaminants from water. , 2012, ACS nano.

[35]  Yen Wei,et al.  A facile solvent-manipulated mesh for reversible oil/water separation. , 2014, ACS applied materials & interfaces.

[36]  N. Chen,et al.  Robust superhydrophobic polyurethane sponge as a highly reusable oil-absorption material , 2013 .

[37]  Li Wang,et al.  Corrigendum: Ultrafast universal quantum control of a quantum-dot charge qubit using Landau–Zener–Stückelberg interference , 2013, Nature Communications.

[38]  M. Radetić,et al.  Recycled wool-based nonwoven material as an oil sorbent. , 2003, Environmental science & technology.

[39]  Xiaohong Wang,et al.  Transformation of hydrophilic cotton fabrics into superhydrophobic surfaces for oil/water separation , 2013 .

[40]  Song-Ping Zhu,et al.  A Numerical Model for the Confinement of Oil Spill with Floating Booms , 2002 .

[41]  S. Park,et al.  Bio-inspired, multi-purpose and instant superhydrophobic–superoleophilic lotus leaf powder hybrid micro–nanocomposites for selective oil spill capture , 2013 .

[42]  Jiang Cheng,et al.  Functional silica film on stainless steel mesh with tunable wettability , 2011 .

[43]  Lei Jiang,et al.  Electrospun porous structure fibrous film with high oil adsorption capacity. , 2012, ACS applied materials & interfaces.

[44]  Rong Xiang,et al.  Magnetic and highly recyclable macroporous carbon nanotubes for spilled oil sorption and separation. , 2013, ACS applied materials & interfaces.

[45]  M. Zheng,et al.  Two-dimensional ZnO nanoflakes coated mesh for the separation of water and oil , 2013 .

[46]  Lianbin Zhang,et al.  A self-cleaning underwater superoleophobic mesh for oil-water separation , 2013, Scientific Reports.

[47]  Jin Zhai,et al.  Super‐Hydrophobic Surfaces: From Natural to Artificial , 2002 .

[48]  A. Bayat,et al.  Oil Spill Cleanup from Sea Water by Sorbent Materials , 2005 .

[49]  Bharat Bhushan,et al.  Natural and biomimetic artificial surfaces for superhydrophobicity, self-cleaning, low adhesion, and drag reduction , 2011 .

[50]  E. H. Harvey.  The Surface Tension of Crude Oils. , 1925 .

[51]  Wonjae Choi,et al.  Hygro-responsive membranes for effective oil–water separation , 2012, Nature Communications.

[52]  M. Xue,et al.  In situ separation and collection of oil from water surface via a novel superoleophilic and superhydrophobic oil containment boom. , 2014, Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids.