SYNTHESIS OF HYBRID SPONGY NANOCOMPOSITE MATERIALS BASED ON Al2O3 AND STEARIC ACID TO RECOVER WASTE OIL IN WATER

Abstract

The spongy nanocomposite materials based on Al₂O₃ hybridized with stearic acid were synthesized by a hydrothermal method combined with a sol-gel combustion method. The characteristics of the materials were determined by standard methods such as Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A 0.03 M NH₃ solution and a 0.05 M stearic acid solution were used to synthesize materials. The synthesis yield of Al₂O₃ nanoparticles and stearic acid hybridized Al₂O₃ spongy nanocomposites reached 96.5 % and 97.6 %, respectively. The effects of the variation of NH₃ concentrations, steric acid concentrations, and sintering temperature on the absorbability of the nanofoams were investigated. The hybrid nanomaterials were used to treat 2 types of waste oil from motorcycle engine and cooking. The results showed that 1 g of hybrid nanocomposite foams absorbed 5 mL of waste oil. This indicates that the steric acid-hybridized Al₂O₃ spongy nanomaterials could be applied for the treatment of oil pollution.