Cellulose Aerogel from Paper Waste for Crude Oil Spill Cleaning

Abstract

Polyprolylene is commonly used for crude oil spill cleaning, but it has low absorption capacity and is nonbiodegradable. In our work, a green, ultralight, and highly porous material was successfully prepared from paper waste cellulose fibers. The material was functionalized with methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) to enhance its hydrophobicity and oleophilicity. Water contact angles of 143 and 145° were obtained for the MTMS-coated recycled cellulose aerogel. The aerogel achieved high absorption capacities of 18.4, 18.5, and 20.5 g/g for three different crude oils at 25 °C, respectively. In the investigated temperature range of 10, 25, 40, and 60 °C for the absorption of the tested crude oil on the aerogel, a highest absorption capacity of 24.4 g/g was obtained. It was found that the viscosity of the crude oils is the main factor affecting their absorption onto the aerogel. The strong affinity of the MTMS-coated recycled cellulose aerogel to the oils makes the aerogel a good absorbent for crude oil spill cleaning.

Thermal Jacket Design Using Cellulose Aerogels for Heat Insulation Application of Water Bottles

“…After 3 h at 120 °C, the aerogel sample can achieve its finalized thickness and shape as seen in Figure 3b. Mode details of the morphology and the properties of the cellulose aerogel can be found on our previous works [9][10][11][12]. …”

“…Among common insulation materials such as polystyrene foam [7,8], using cellulose aerogels from paper waste [9][10][11][12] can be a better insulator choice. The cellulose aerogels are environmentally friendly and are made of the cellulose fibers from recycled waste paper through freeze-drying processes [9][10][11][12].…”

“…The cellulose aerogels are environmentally friendly and are made of the cellulose fibers from recycled waste paper through freeze-drying processes [9][10][11][12]. The cellulose aerogels have the low thermal conductivity (0.03-0.04 W/m·K) and less toxic emissions and require less harmful chemicals during the fabrication [9][10][11][12]. The cellulose aerogels has the lowest density of 0.04 g/cm 3 , which is lighter than other common insulation materials, and perform similar insulation results [10,12].…”

“…However, the cellulose aerogels have low tensile strength, and their structures can be damaged easily upon rough handling [9][10][11][12]. It is thus necessary to sandwich the cellulose aerogels between two protective layers so that the insulated jacket can be more durable.…”

Hydrolysis Lignin as a Sorbent and Basis for Solid Composite Biofuel

“…Common solutions and projects include in-situ burning of oil on water, mechanical tools (booms, skimmers and novel devices as powerful hydrodynamic laser [4], use of chemical dispersants, steam flushing, solidifiers, different kind of sorbents, involving, inter alia, carbon nanofiber and nanocellulose aerogels [5] [6], and biodegradation agents that are effective on shorelines or land.…”