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Harnessing plastic waste for sustainable membrane filtration with trimodal structure through acid-catalyzed oxidation

journal contribution
submitted on 2024-07-25, 06:26 and posted on 2024-07-25, 07:33 authored by Junaid Saleem, Zubair Khalid Baig Moghal, Gordon McKay

Polyolefin waste is among the most generated yet least recycled. Despite its potential as a feedstock of superhydrophobic membranes for organic solvent filtration, it remains a challenge to achieve high selectivity and permeability for viscous oils. In this study, we valorized polyolefin waste into trimodal water filtration membranes through acid-catalyzed oxidation and a void inducer. This approach enabled the creation of membranes with exceptional wettability and strength, characterized by a combination of micropores, macrovoids (30–70 µm), and cavities (150–200 µm). The acid-catalyzed oxidation introduced oxygen moieties into the membrane structure, resulting in a reduced water contact angle, improved hydrophilicity, and increased permeability. The micropores facilitated capillary action, macrovoids enabled efficient water passage, and cavities acted as oil reservoirs, for optimal oil–water separation. Various membranes were synthesized using low-density and high-density polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and their blend. The obtained results were compared with commercial membranes, revealing a flow rate of 43 ml/min, a retention capacity of 261 mg, and an oil removal efficiency ranging from 84–94 %. Furthermore, the membranes exhibited recyclability, demonstrating stability over at least 10 cycles. This hybrid process transforms plastic waste into trimodal water filtration membranes, achieving a balance between superoleophilicity and hydrophilicity.

Other Information

Published in: Chemical Engineering Journal
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2024.150230

Funding

Open Access funding provided by the Qatar National Library.

Qatar National Research Fund (NPRP12S-0325-190443, From Waste to Wealth: Eco-Friendly production of super-sorbents from plastic waste.

History

Language

  • English

Publisher

Elsevier

Publication Year

  • 2024

License statement

This Item is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Institution affiliated with

  • Hamad Bin Khalifa University
  • College of Science and Engineering - HBKU
  • Qatar University
  • College of Engineering - QU
  • Center for Advanced Materials - QU

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