Superhydrophobic/superoleophilic natural fibres for continuous oil-water separation and interfacial dye-adsorption

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dc.contributor.authorNine, M.J.
dc.contributor.authorKabiri, S.
dc.contributor.authorSumona, A.K.
dc.contributor.authorTung, T.T.
dc.contributor.authorAbdelsadik, M.M.
dc.contributor.authorLosic, D.
dc.date.issued2020
dc.description.abstractThe inconsistent wettability of biological superwetting materials, due to aging, morphological change, structural fragility and biodegradation, limit their practical use for highly demanding applications such as oil-water separation and dye adsorption. Herein, we present a new source of superwetting materials harvested from waste chestnut-shell. The material is in the form of micro-fibres which are intrinsically oleophilic/hydrophobic, chemically stable, lightweight and structurally robust. The harvested microfibres, laying between inner-liner and outer shell of the chestnut, are naturally enriched with aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbon that results in their high oleophilicity. We demonstrated that these superoleophilic fibre-networks could be used as oil-absorbent exhibiting outstanding absorption efficiency with a maximum capacity of ~94% of their own weight. Afterwards, an efficient filtration membrane was engineered using these micro-fibres showing their ability for continuous oil-water separation process for a series of organic solvents (toluene, canola oil, engine oil, hexane, turpentine oil, petrol and olive oil) co-existing with water. Furthermore, the fibres were realized to be capable of adsorbing organic dyes at oil-water interfaces in both static (slow adsorption) and dynamic (instant adsorption) condition suggesting their multifunctionality in wastewater treatments. A small amount of fibres (0.75 g/L) could efficiently remove water miscible dyes of Rhodamine-B and Methylene blue with a maximum removal efficiency of 88% and ~91%, respectively. These low-cost natural fibres from biowaste with outstanding oil-water separation and organic dye-adsorption capacity have considerable advantages compared to other low-cost materials reported earlier for industrial wastewater-treatment and environmental remediation.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityMd J. Nine, Shervin Kabiri, Achia K. Sumona, Tran T. Tung, Mahmoud M. Moussa, Dusan Losic
dc.identifier.citationSeparation and Purification Technology, 2020; 233:116062-1-116062-10
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.seppur.2019.116062
dc.identifier.issn1383-5866
dc.identifier.issn1873-3794
dc.identifier.orcidNine, M.J. [0000-0002-5740-8627]
dc.identifier.orcidKabiri, S. [0000-0002-2269-6075]
dc.identifier.orcidTung, T.T. [0000-0002-1535-5109]
dc.identifier.orcidAbdelsadik, M.M. [0000-0001-5890-0851]
dc.identifier.orcidLosic, D. [0000-0002-1930-072X]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/127065
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherElsevier
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/IH150100003
dc.rights© 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.seppur.2019.116062
dc.subjectBiowaste; microfibres; superoleophilicity; separation; adsorption
dc.titleSuperhydrophobic/superoleophilic natural fibres for continuous oil-water separation and interfacial dye-adsorption
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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