Facile preparation of superhydrophilic/underwater superoleophobic cellulose membrane with CaCO3 particles for oil/water separation

The oily wastewater has been widely concerned owing to growing industrial wastewater and marine pollution. Herein, a cellulose-based oil/water separation membrane was fabricated using a very simple alternating soaking process (ASP). First, the sodium alginate was coated on the cellulose membrane surface (filter paper), and then CaCO3 particles were assembled onto the membrane surface through ASP, finally we can get the superhydrophilic/underwater superoleophobic cellulose membrane (FP@SA/CaCO3) for oil/water separation. The underwater oil contact angle (OCA) of FP@SA/CaCO3 is 151.1 degrees, which indicated that FP@SA/CaCO3 has good underwater superoleophobicity. Moreover, for different oil/water mixtures, the FP@SA/CaCO3 membrane has outstanding separation efficiency of over 99.2 % and the flux of over 400 L m(-2) h(-1). Besides, even after 20 reuse, FP@SA/CaCO3 still showed a high flux and separation efficiency, indicating FP@SA/CaCO3 has good reusability. The FP@SA/CaCO3 membrane with low cost and high performance shows a good application market for oily wastewater remediation in the future.

Automated summary

The cellulose membrane (FP@SA/CaCO3) fabricated through a simple alternating soaking process exhibits excellent underwater superoleophobicity, high separation efficiency and flux for various oil/water mixtures, and good reusability even after multiple reuse. This low-cost and high-performance membrane presents a promising application prospect in oily wastewater treatment.