SEM Study of Oil Adsorption on the Surface of Khaya Senegalensis Dried Leaves

Abstract

Untreated produced water contains numerous substances that can cause harm to the environment such as dispersed and dissolved oil, heavy metals, and production chemicals. Dispersed oil content in produced water may vary with different oil wells. Dispersed oil in water is classified as toxicants to human beings and marine life. The focus of doing this research is to study the oil adsorption characteristics of dried Khaya Senegalensis leaves in produced water and to investigate the effect of temperature on oil adsorption efficiency of the dried leaves. Khaya Senegalensis dried leaves were chosen for the research because they are considered as natural waste that exist in abundance in the environment. The results from SEM analysis showed that adsorbed oil patches appeared on the surface of the leaves. This is due to the leaves' rich phytochemical constituents which is lipophilic in nature. However, an increase in temperature of the solution will result in the decrease in the number of adsorbed oil patches on the surface of the leaves. This is due to the leaching of these phytochemical constituents into the surrounding solution which reduces oil adsorption efficiency of the dried leaves.