Superhydrophobic and Compressible Silica-polyHIPE Covalently Bonded Porous Networks via Emulsion Templating for Oil Spill Cleanup and Recovery

Abstract

We synthesize porous polyHIPE networks with silanol functionalities in the polyHIPE backbone. These silanol functionalities are used for covalent bonding with silica aerogels embedded in the polyHIPE. Covalent bonding between silica and polyHIPE networks are confirmed using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Silica aerogels covalently bonded with polyHIPE network show macroporous and mesoporous morphologies and possess excellent properties like high bendability, high elasticity, superhydrophobicity (~160°), low density (~0.128 g/cm3), and low thermal conductivity (~0.045 W/m·K). Oil absorption from water/oil mixtures and recovery of the absorbed oil (by squeezing) from flexible silica-polyHIPE networks is studied. The silica-polyHIPE is shown to absorb crude oil ~16-times its own weight and can be reused multiple times after recovery. Hence, such materials are very important for oil spill cleanup applications from aqueous systems.

Recent advances in novel aerogels through the hybrid aggregation of inorganic nanomaterials and polymeric fibers for thermal insulation

“…The structural fragility of traditional inorganic aerogels is mainly due to the weak interaction between the network nodes formed by the sol-gel process. [32,33] As we known, when the diameter is reduced to nanometer level, the flexibility and specific surface area of the fiber will be significantly improved. [34] Nanofibers have the characteristics of high aspect ratio and high surface activity, and can help in the nucleation of sol particles and participate in the construction of the gel network.…”

Fundamentals and Design‐Led Synthesis of Emulsion‐Templated Porous Materials for Environmental Applications

“…This silica aerogels‐laden polyHIPE network exhibited macroporous and mesoporous structures with high surface area of 468 m 2 g −1 , excellent bendability, high elasticity, superhydrophobicity (≈160°), low density (≈0.128 g cm −3 ), low thermal conductivity (≈0.045 W m −1 ·K −1 ), and good thermal stability (≈300 °C) in air ( Figure 9 a,b ). [ 190 ]…”

“…Reproduced under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. [ 190 ] Copyright 2017, The Authors(s), published by Springer Nature. c) Schematic illustration for the preparation of monolithic magnetic macroporous CS‐PAA hydrogel.…”

“…These highly flexible and stable porous materials could be regenerated easily by squeezing the swollen adsorbent ( Figure 18 a–c ). [ 190 ] The sorption/desorption capacity for crude oil was recorded as ≈16 g g −1 . This composite adsorbent could be reused for 25 sorption cycles with similar adsorption capacity.…”

Hierarchically Porous Microspheres by Thiol-ene Photopolymerization of High Internal Phase Emulsions-in-Water Colloidal Systems

“…Porous polymers are an increasingly researched class of materials due to their specific characteristics and wide applicability. They can be used as flow-through supports [ 1 ], in oil spill clean-ups [ 2 ], in extractions [ 3 ], in catalyses [ 4 ], as adsorbents and absorbents [ 5 ], as shape-memory materials [ 6 ], in heavy metal removal [ 7 ], in separation processes (filters) [ 8 ], as controlled-release matrices [ 9 ], wound dressings [ 10 ], tissue engineering [ 11 ], advanced healthcare applications [ 12 ], etc. Furthermore, easy and relatively cheap processing and the possibility of controlled degradation make porous polymers an alternative to porous inorganic materials.…”