Investigation of Oil Spill Absorbents Using Different Materials
Catastrophic oil spills such as that in Gulf of Mexico remind us of the necessity of prompt action to develop an environmentally friendly, cost-effective and large scale technology to minimize environmental consequences caused by such disasters. This research will provide an alternative for oil s...
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| Format: | Final Year Project |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS
2011
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| Online Access: | http://utpedia.utp.edu.my/10524/1/2011%20-%20Investigation%20of%20oil%20spill%20absorbent%20using%20different%20materials.pdf http://utpedia.utp.edu.my/10524/ |
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| Summary: | Catastrophic oil spills such as that in Gulf of Mexico remind us of the necessity of prompt action
to develop an environmentally friendly, cost-effective and large scale technology to minimize
environmental consequences caused by such disasters. This research will provide an alternative
for oil spill absorbent using organic vegetable products. The applications are for offshore
purposes. Three materials that are used for the study are: kapok ( Ceiba Pentandra), coconut husk
(Coir), and human hair. Dulang crude oil and Shell diesel oil were used throughout the
experiment together with sea water from Teluk Batik. The interfacial tension test that was carried
out shown that kapok has a lower contact angle compare to Coir and Human hair. This proved
that Kapok is a better natural absorbent for oil spill combat. Oil absorbency test was conducted
to measure the oleophilic/hydrophobic capability of each material. All of the three materials were
found to have low hydrophobic and high oleophilic characteristic. However, human hair required
five times the standardize amount to able to absorb all the oil present in the experiment. It was
also found that Kapok can absorb up to five times its own weight. Coir suuk to the bottom after a
few minutes which complicate the retrieving process. Overall, the results suggested that organic
vegetable products can replace the existing synthetic sorbents for a more environmental friendly
method to combat oil spill pollution. |
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