Highly efficient adsorbent for the transformer oil purification by ZnO/Graphene composite

In this work, a highly efficient adsorbent consisting of the ZnO/Graphene composite was prepared for the first time via the sonification route using urea as an alkaline precursor. The synthesized ZnO/Graphene composite provides the highest specific surface area comparing to other ZnO/Graphene composites synthesized by different approaches presented in the literature. For all we know, this is the first time the obtained ZnO/Graphene composite was used as an adsorbent for the transformer oil purification. The results showed that the ZnO/Graphene composite has a higher purification capacity than the conventional adsorbent, a commercial zeolite. Several factors that may underpin this outstanding result, such as the unreduced oxygen functional groups, the vacancy defects on the surface of the RGO flake, the high specific surface area, and the suitable pore size of the ZnO/Graphene composite for oil refining. Besides, the 3D structure of the ZnO/Graphene composite can enlarge the residence purification time of the transformer oil, helping to improve the purification capacity of the ZnO/Graphene composite. (C) 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of King Saud University.