Scientists in Arizona and New Jersey believe that airgel materials - super-light solids sometimes called 'freezing fumes' - can act as a sponge to help absorb oil from waste water and soak up in a way. effective oil slicks in the environment.
In the new study, Robert Pfeffer and colleagues pointed out that the environmental challenges of oil pollution have become significant after the well-known marine oil spill events like the Exxon Valdez affair.
Experts estimate that people emit more than 200 million gallons of spent oil each year through sewers, streams and backyards of their homes, making the situation of polluted water become increasingly serious. Although there are many different absorbent materials that help remove used oils, such as activated carbon, these materials are quite expensive but not effective. The waterproof silicon silica gel material has a lot of tiny holes and is also an absorbent material. It seems to carry the characteristics of an impeccably oily sponge.
Scientists have assembled small aerogels into a vertical pillar and brought them down to flowing water containing soybean oil to stimulate filtration at a wastewater treatment plant. They show that this series of aerogels can absorb up to seven times its weight while removing oil in wastewater with high efficiency, higher than conventional absorbent materials.
Refer:
Quevedo et al.Removal of Oil from Water by Inverse Fluidization of Aerogels.Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 2009;48 (1): 191 DOI: 10.1021 / ie800022e