Titanium Meets Carbon: Enhanced Reusable Filters for Oil–Water Separation and Environmental Remediation

To mitigate the environmental effects of oil spills, a novel hydrophilic–oleophobic mixed-coated filter was developed for efficient oil–water separation and surface oil recovery. The coating consisted of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO<sub>2</sub>) and ultra-fine carbon black powder,...

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Main Authors: Amir-Hadi Boroumand, Kayla Laguana, Eric Dudley, Pilar Cuadros-Arias, Adrian Rubio, Zachary Shin, Jack Webster, Mingheng Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-03-01
Series:Separations
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2297-8739/12/4/83
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author Amir-Hadi Boroumand
Kayla Laguana
Eric Dudley
Pilar Cuadros-Arias
Adrian Rubio
Zachary Shin
Jack Webster
Mingheng Li
author_facet Amir-Hadi Boroumand
Kayla Laguana
Eric Dudley
Pilar Cuadros-Arias
Adrian Rubio
Zachary Shin
Jack Webster
Mingheng Li
author_sort Amir-Hadi Boroumand
collection DOAJ
description To mitigate the environmental effects of oil spills, a novel hydrophilic–oleophobic mixed-coated filter was developed for efficient oil–water separation and surface oil recovery. The coating consisted of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO<sub>2</sub>) and ultra-fine carbon black powder, deposited onto a 304 stainless-steel mesh substrate via spray deposition, followed by high-temperature sintering. This process induced a phase transition in TiO<sub>2</sub> from anatase to rutile, and formed a TiC khamrabaevite. The filter’s performance was evaluated using contact angle measurements and filtration tests with a motor oil–water mixture, while SEM, EDS, and XRD analyses characterized its morphology and coating structure. Contact angle testing confirmed that carbon modification significantly enhanced the oleophobicity of the TiO<sub>2</sub> filter, and SEM imaging demonstrated higher substrate coating adhesion, enabling multiple reuse cycles. These findings highlight the potential of TiO<sub>2</sub> carbon composite coatings in improving oil spill remediation technologies by offering a reusable and efficient filtration system.
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institution OA Journals
issn 2297-8739
language English
publishDate 2025-03-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Separations
spelling doaj-art-0a6c43f049a947bfbcd441d91f0147b62025-08-20T02:25:07ZengMDPI AGSeparations2297-87392025-03-011248310.3390/separations12040083Titanium Meets Carbon: Enhanced Reusable Filters for Oil–Water Separation and Environmental RemediationAmir-Hadi Boroumand0Kayla Laguana1Eric Dudley2Pilar Cuadros-Arias3Adrian Rubio4Zachary Shin5Jack Webster6Mingheng Li7Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Chemical and Materials Engineering, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Chemical and Materials Engineering, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Chemical and Materials Engineering, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Chemical and Materials Engineering, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Chemical and Materials Engineering, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA 91768, USADepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USADepartment of Chemical and Materials Engineering, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA 91768, USATo mitigate the environmental effects of oil spills, a novel hydrophilic–oleophobic mixed-coated filter was developed for efficient oil–water separation and surface oil recovery. The coating consisted of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO<sub>2</sub>) and ultra-fine carbon black powder, deposited onto a 304 stainless-steel mesh substrate via spray deposition, followed by high-temperature sintering. This process induced a phase transition in TiO<sub>2</sub> from anatase to rutile, and formed a TiC khamrabaevite. The filter’s performance was evaluated using contact angle measurements and filtration tests with a motor oil–water mixture, while SEM, EDS, and XRD analyses characterized its morphology and coating structure. Contact angle testing confirmed that carbon modification significantly enhanced the oleophobicity of the TiO<sub>2</sub> filter, and SEM imaging demonstrated higher substrate coating adhesion, enabling multiple reuse cycles. These findings highlight the potential of TiO<sub>2</sub> carbon composite coatings in improving oil spill remediation technologies by offering a reusable and efficient filtration system.https://www.mdpi.com/2297-8739/12/4/83titanium dioxidecarbon blackoleophobic and hydrophilic coatingfilteroil–water separation
spellingShingle Amir-Hadi Boroumand
Kayla Laguana
Eric Dudley
Pilar Cuadros-Arias
Adrian Rubio
Zachary Shin
Jack Webster
Mingheng Li
Titanium Meets Carbon: Enhanced Reusable Filters for Oil–Water Separation and Environmental Remediation
Separations
titanium dioxide
carbon black
oleophobic and hydrophilic coating
filter
oil–water separation
title Titanium Meets Carbon: Enhanced Reusable Filters for Oil–Water Separation and Environmental Remediation
title_full Titanium Meets Carbon: Enhanced Reusable Filters for Oil–Water Separation and Environmental Remediation
title_fullStr Titanium Meets Carbon: Enhanced Reusable Filters for Oil–Water Separation and Environmental Remediation
title_full_unstemmed Titanium Meets Carbon: Enhanced Reusable Filters for Oil–Water Separation and Environmental Remediation
title_short Titanium Meets Carbon: Enhanced Reusable Filters for Oil–Water Separation and Environmental Remediation
title_sort titanium meets carbon enhanced reusable filters for oil water separation and environmental remediation
topic titanium dioxide
carbon black
oleophobic and hydrophilic coating
filter
oil–water separation
url https://www.mdpi.com/2297-8739/12/4/83
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