SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE
Intelligent sponge with reversibly tunable super-wettability: robust for effective oil–water separation as both the absorber and filter tolerate fouling and harsh environments†
Abstract
We fabricate an intelligent and robust sponge by a one-step and low-cost ultrasonic-assisted dip coating (UADC) method, which involves the modification of the commercial sponge with TiO2 nanoparticles and a low-surface-energy compound (octadecanoic acid). The as-prepared sponge shows intelligent reversibly tunable super-wettability and exhibits robustness for effective oil–water separation. It can act as both the absorber and filter for the highly efficient separation of oil–water mixtures under different super-wettability conditions. More importantly, it has remarkably high chemical stability, which can separate oil–water mixtures in the extremely high acidic and alkaline environments as well as the extremely high salt concentration of seawater (such as 10 M H2SO4 and NaOH, and saturated NaCl media). Meanwhile, the as-prepared sponge has excellent antifouling ability, which shows self-cleaning performance during multiple fouling cycles. These extraordinary properties suggest that the as-prepared sponge will be a promising candidate for large-scale oil–water separation.
Please wait while we load your content...
