Optimized Functionalization of Industrial Waste for Oil Spill Remediation

Oil spill and leakage can severely affect the environment, as many recent events testify. Many methods and materials have been developed and tested for oil spill cleanup, with the current research investigation focused on designing eco-friendly, inexpensive, and reliable adsorbents. In the present paper, two materials were tested. A 13X zeolite, produced using low-cost raw materials, and a zeolitic waste provided by a local plant. The selectivity between oil and water adsorption and the oil adsorption capacity were measured on the selected materials, before and after functionalization. The functionalization, via an esterification reaction using palmitic acid, has allowed attributing hydrophobic/oleophillic features to both materials. The water contact angles, after modification, resulted in a value equal to 136 ± 1° for the zeolitic waste and 128 ± 2° for the 13X zeolite. The treated materials segregated in oil region when spread in an oil/water dispersion, and the 13X exhibited an oil sorption capacity of 0.4 gr of oil/gr adsorbent and a selectivity in the oil/water absorption equal to 62%, whereas the zeolitic waste adsorbed 1 gr of oil/gr adsorbent with a selectivity of 73%. The better performance of the zeolitic waste can be ascribed to its heterogeneous nature, which allows the presence of additional mechanisms of clean up, such as oil stabilization. Furthermore, being currently landfilled, this potential application paves the way to its eco-friendly reuse.