Wetting and non-wetting behavior of abrasive paper for oil water separation and oil spill cleanup

In this study, waste materials of abrasive papers were investigated as hydrophobic absorption surfaces for removing oils from water. The surface structure/morphology and hydrophobicity of abrasive papers were investigated by X-ray diffraction/scanning electron microscope and contact angle measurements using a goniometer. The abrasive papers show both high buoyancy and excellent sorption capacity of various kinds of oils. The optimal sample exhibited maximum sorption capacities of 13.12 mg/cm(2) for silicon oil, 6.98 mg/cm(2) for peanut oil, 10.18 mg/cm(2) for lubrication oil, and 4.57 mg/cm(2) for diesel, respectively. Due to the buoyancy, these materials could be taken out easily after removing the oil from water. These abrasive papers exhibit superior reusable property and high stability as well. Therefore, this approach has a great potential in the future as a cost-effective technique for oil/water separation at large scale, which is highly desirable for future applications in shale gas technology, pressurizing aged oil well with clean water, and oil spill clean-up process.