Preparation of superhydrophobic electrospun MWCNT-SiO₂/PVDF composite membranes for oil adsorption

Abstract

In this work, an useful way to fabricate the superhydrophobic electrospun multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)-SiO2/polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) composite membranes for the oil adsorption was developed. First, the SiO2 nanoparticles were prepared using the Stöber method followed by the modification with the trimethoxy (1H, 1H, 2H, 2H-heptadecafluorodecyl) silane (TMHFDS). Next, the nanofibrous MWCNT-SiO2/PVDF composite membranes were prepared by the electrospinning technique and then immersed into the TMHFDS solution to lower its surface energy. Furthermore, the structure of the TMHFDS-modified MWCNTs-SiO2/PVDF composite membranes were studied by the scanning electron microscope, the Fourier-transform infrared, the wide-angle x-ray diffraction, and the measurement results of the wetting property showed that the TMHFDS-modified MWCNTs-SiO2/PVDF composite membranes could be superhydrophobic with the highest water contact angle of 155°. The resultant TMHFDS-modified MWCNT-SiO2/PVDF composite membranes were able to absorb different oils with the adsorption capacities ranging from 4.2 g g−1 to7.2 g g−1.

Preparation of Highly Adhesion Hydrophobic Membrane and Superhydrophobic Membrane via Electrospinning

“…Among these techniques, superhydrophobicity plays a key role in downstream applications; therefore, considerable efforts have been made in recent years to prepare superhydrophobic materials for various purposes in recent years. [ 15–21 ]…”

“…Among these techniques, superhydrophobicity plays a key role in downstream applications; therefore, considerable efforts have been made in recent years to prepare superhydrophobic materials for various purposes in recent years. [15][16][17][18][19][20][21] It is well known that a low surface energy and micro/nanostructural roughness are the important aspects to prepare superhydrophobic surfaces. Therefore, there are so many methods and researches on the preparation of superhydrophobic materials.…”

Facile Fabrication of High‐White and Robust Superhydrophobic Ni/Al2O3 Composite Coating on Al Alloy

“…[1][2][3][4] Various studies have reported that the low surface energy and rough micro-nano structure characteristics of materials are critical factors for their superhydrophobic properties. [5,6] Moreover, the characteristics of large contact angle, small rolling angle, and low surface energy enable superhydrophobic surface to achieve expectable self-cleaning, reduced drag force, and increased buoyancy, anticorrosion, and anti-icing properties. [7][8][9][10][11][12] Therefore, the superhydrophobic films demonstrate essential practical values in aircraft flight, ship navigation, and chemical production, which also brought practical improvements in safety, economy, and convenience.…”