Oil-Water Separation Performance of Electrospray Reduced Graphene Oxide Microspheres with a Local Radially Aligned and Porous Structure

Abstract

Micro-size oil adsorbents are effective for the rapid remediation of special oil spills. Here, N-doped reduced graphene oxide(RGO) microspheres(ca. 150 µm in diameter) with a local radially aligned and porous structure are fabricated by combining electrospray-freeze-drying with thermal treatment for rapid separation of oil-water. Owing to its hydrophobic/oleophilic properties and oriented structure, the N-doped RGO microspheres achieve high capacities and fast adsorption rates for a variety of oils and organic solvents. Furthermore, excellent oil-water separation performance on floating oil/oil-water emulsions and stable cyclic adsorption capacities are obtained for the local radially aligned and porous microsphere. Therefore, N-doped RGO microspheres with the unique porous structure have the potential for the remediation of oily sewage and oil spills.

Keywords

Electrospray / Radially aligned structure / Microsphere / Reduced graphene oxide / Oil-water separation

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