Super hydrophobic PU sponge modified by poly-vinylidene fluoride/SBA-15@NPS hybrid

In the present work, we try to design and prepare super-hydrophobic, porous, and activated polyurethane (PU) sponge based on physical and chemical surface coating method. The superhydrophobic sponge was effectively modified utilizing nanoporous carbon (NPC), Santa Barbara Amorphous-15 (SBA-15), and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) to separation of oil compounds from water. Incorporating of NPC/SBA nanohybrid with sponge provides a proper functional group and large surface area on 3D structure of the PU sponge. Application of PVDF has been used to change the hydrophobic/hydrophilic properties of PU sponge surface. FT-IR, XRD, BET, SEM, EDS, and contact angle were used for characterization of the prepared modified sponge. To determine the separation efficiency of modified sponge, a set of experiments at different organic solvents, time, and temperatures were designed and performed. Applying NPC/SBA nanohybrid in the role of adsorbent will certainly increase separation efficiency of sponge. We believe that composition of NPC, SBA-15, and PVDF could be a considerable candidate in oil/water separation, especially in oil/gas company waste water treatment and filtration processes.