Formation of Acetylene Carbon Black/Poly(butyl acrylate) Macroporous Monoliths for Oil–Water and Emulsion Separations

Acetylene carbon black (CB), an oleophilic and hydrophobic substance, is often used as an additive in composite materials. However, its potential for stabilizing water-in-oil emulsions and the properties of its formed materials remain to be explored. Herein, an elastic porous monolith with a high strength of 1.6 MPa was synthesized through the water-in-oil high-internal-phase emulsion template method using butyl acrylate as the oil phase. Incorporating CB into the oil phase and the synergistic use of surfactant remarkably improved the stability of the emulsion. Moreover, increasing the CB content further enhanced the material’s hydrophobicity, mechanical properties, and absorption capabilities. Notably, the as-synthesized material exhibited exceptional porosity (88.3%), enabling the rapid absorption of oils and organic solvents (achieving saturated absorption capacity within 10 s) along with a high absorption capacity (39.3 g/g for dichloromethane). Furthermore, it demonstrated effective oil–water separation, emulsion separation, and reusability.