Synthesis of reusable silicone foam containing carbon nanotubes for oil spill remediation

Abstract

The aim of this work is the synthesis of silicone foam containing carbon nanotubes (CNT) for oil spills remediation. The CNT silicone foams are obtained by foaming a solution of a silicone matrix with CNT filler (5.6 wt %) in presence of a Sn-based catalyst. Pristine and functionalized CNT have been used. All the obtained materials present a foam morphology with an open cell structure. Each foam is tested in four commonly used oils (kerosene, pump oil, naphtha, and crude oil). Among all, the foam filled with pristine CNT shows the highest sorption capacity (800 wt % in virgin naphtha) and an excellent reusability (up to 10 times).But, until now, none of the mentioned systems is entirely satisfactory because of certain problems, such as permanent hydrophilic nature, low flammability, and sorption efficiency. Moreover, many of them are complex, expensive, and bulky.Recently Chen et al. demonstrated a simple, inexpensive, versatile, and scalable process to prepare superhydrophobic and Additional Supporting Information may be found in the online version of this article.

Assessment of sorption kinetics of carbon nanotube‐based composite foams for oil recovery application

“…More details for pore size of investigated foams are reported in Ref. . The CNT foams show also a good reusability as discussed in Ref.…”

“…At the same time, the amount of functional groups or active sites on the composite sorbent surface is useful to facilitate the interaction with the oil molecules of the pollutants. The proposed composite foam is characterized by hydrophobic and oleophilic properties necessary for a high sorption selectivity during the oil removal processes …”

“…In this concern, in this work, the sorption kinetics of pollutant oils (kerosene, virgin naphtha, crude oil, and pump oil) into CNT‐based silicone foams, synthetized according to Ref. is investigated. In this concern, morphological and sorption capacities of composite foams are evaluated.…”

Micro‐tomographic characterization of composite recycled glass‐silicone foams for applications in civil engineering

“…The aim of this work is to evaluate the synthesis and morphologically characterize an eco‐sustainable composite foams consisting of a siloxane matrix and glass waste filler as a future application in thermal insulation panels for civil engineering. The high chemical compatibility of the siloxane compounds with different fillers has allowed us to assess the applicability of this composite material, with promising results, in various fields of application . In this regard, the glass filler has good chemical compatibility with the silanol groups of the silicone matrix .…”

“…The high chemical compatibility of the siloxane compounds with different fillers has allowed us to assess the applicability of this composite material, with promising results, in various fields of application. [29][30][31] In this regard, the glass filler has good chemical compatibility with the silanol groups of the silicone matrix. 32 The strong chemical interaction between the two components is a stimulus to identify their potential effective combination aimed to obtain a performing composite material in terms of physical-mechanical properties.…”