Facile Construction and Fabrication of a Superhydrophobic and Super Oleophilic Stainless Steel Mesh for Separation of Water and Oil
The fluoride-free fabrication of superhydrophobic materials for the separation of oil/water mixtures has received widespread attention because of frequent offshore oil exploration and chemical leakage. In recent years, oil/water separation materials, based on metal meshes, have drawn much attention,...
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MDPI AG
2022-05-01
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| author | Yinyu Sun Zhongcheng Ke Caiyun Shen Qing Wei Ruikang Sun Wei Yang Zihan Yin |
| author_facet | Yinyu Sun Zhongcheng Ke Caiyun Shen Qing Wei Ruikang Sun Wei Yang Zihan Yin |
| author_sort | Yinyu Sun |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The fluoride-free fabrication of superhydrophobic materials for the separation of oil/water mixtures has received widespread attention because of frequent offshore oil exploration and chemical leakage. In recent years, oil/water separation materials, based on metal meshes, have drawn much attention, with significant advantages in terms of their high mechanical strength, easy availability, and long durability. However, it is still challenging to prepare superhydrophobic metal meshes with high-separation capacity, low costs, and high recyclability for dealing with oil–water separation. In this work, a superhydrophobic and super oleophilic stainless steel mesh (SSM) was successfully prepared by anchoring Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanoclusters (Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs) on SSM via the in-situ flame synthesis method and followed by further modification with octadecyltrimethoxysilane (OTS). The as-prepared SSM with Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs and OTS (OTS@Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM) was confirmed by a field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS), and X-ray diffractometer (XRD). The oil–water separation capacity of the sample was also measured. The results show that the interlaced and dense Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs, composed of Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanoparticles, were uniformly coated on the surface of the SSM after the immerging-burning process. Additionally, a compact self-assembled OTS layer with low surface energy is coated on the surface of Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM, leading to the formation of OTS@Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM. The prepared OTS@Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM shows excellent superhydrophobicity, with a water static contact angle of 151.3°. The separation efficiencies of OTS@Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM for the mixtures of oil/water are all above 98.5%, except for corn oil/water (97.5%) because of its high viscosity. Moreover, the modified SSM exhibits excellent stability and recyclability. This work provides a facile approach for the preparation of superhydrophobic and super oleophilic metal meshes, which will lead to advancements in their large-scale applications on separating oil/water mixtures. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:16:54Z |
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| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:16:54Z |
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| spelling | doaj.art-1b704a7374144c7cbbd92bec083dc6252023-11-23T12:26:13ZengMDPI AGNanomaterials2079-49912022-05-011210166110.3390/nano12101661Facile Construction and Fabrication of a Superhydrophobic and Super Oleophilic Stainless Steel Mesh for Separation of Water and OilYinyu Sun0Zhongcheng Ke1Caiyun Shen2Qing Wei3Ruikang Sun4Wei Yang5Zihan Yin6School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huangshan University, Huangshan 245021, ChinaSchool of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huangshan University, Huangshan 245021, ChinaSchool of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huangshan University, Huangshan 245021, ChinaSchool of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huangshan University, Huangshan 245021, ChinaSchool of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huangshan University, Huangshan 245021, ChinaSchool of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huangshan University, Huangshan 245021, ChinaSchool of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huangshan University, Huangshan 245021, ChinaThe fluoride-free fabrication of superhydrophobic materials for the separation of oil/water mixtures has received widespread attention because of frequent offshore oil exploration and chemical leakage. In recent years, oil/water separation materials, based on metal meshes, have drawn much attention, with significant advantages in terms of their high mechanical strength, easy availability, and long durability. However, it is still challenging to prepare superhydrophobic metal meshes with high-separation capacity, low costs, and high recyclability for dealing with oil–water separation. In this work, a superhydrophobic and super oleophilic stainless steel mesh (SSM) was successfully prepared by anchoring Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanoclusters (Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs) on SSM via the in-situ flame synthesis method and followed by further modification with octadecyltrimethoxysilane (OTS). The as-prepared SSM with Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs and OTS (OTS@Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM) was confirmed by a field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS), and X-ray diffractometer (XRD). The oil–water separation capacity of the sample was also measured. The results show that the interlaced and dense Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs, composed of Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanoparticles, were uniformly coated on the surface of the SSM after the immerging-burning process. Additionally, a compact self-assembled OTS layer with low surface energy is coated on the surface of Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM, leading to the formation of OTS@Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM. The prepared OTS@Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM shows excellent superhydrophobicity, with a water static contact angle of 151.3°. The separation efficiencies of OTS@Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-NCs@SSM for the mixtures of oil/water are all above 98.5%, except for corn oil/water (97.5%) because of its high viscosity. Moreover, the modified SSM exhibits excellent stability and recyclability. This work provides a facile approach for the preparation of superhydrophobic and super oleophilic metal meshes, which will lead to advancements in their large-scale applications on separating oil/water mixtures.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/12/10/1661stainless steel meshFe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanoclustersoctadecyltrimethoxysilaneoil–water separation |
| spellingShingle | Yinyu Sun Zhongcheng Ke Caiyun Shen Qing Wei Ruikang Sun Wei Yang Zihan Yin Facile Construction and Fabrication of a Superhydrophobic and Super Oleophilic Stainless Steel Mesh for Separation of Water and Oil Nanomaterials stainless steel mesh Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanoclusters octadecyltrimethoxysilane oil–water separation |
| title | Facile Construction and Fabrication of a Superhydrophobic and Super Oleophilic Stainless Steel Mesh for Separation of Water and Oil |
| title_full | Facile Construction and Fabrication of a Superhydrophobic and Super Oleophilic Stainless Steel Mesh for Separation of Water and Oil |
| title_fullStr | Facile Construction and Fabrication of a Superhydrophobic and Super Oleophilic Stainless Steel Mesh for Separation of Water and Oil |
| title_full_unstemmed | Facile Construction and Fabrication of a Superhydrophobic and Super Oleophilic Stainless Steel Mesh for Separation of Water and Oil |
| title_short | Facile Construction and Fabrication of a Superhydrophobic and Super Oleophilic Stainless Steel Mesh for Separation of Water and Oil |
| title_sort | facile construction and fabrication of a superhydrophobic and super oleophilic stainless steel mesh for separation of water and oil |
| topic | stainless steel mesh Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanoclusters octadecyltrimethoxysilane oil–water separation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/12/10/1661 |
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