i-Petrogel; A comprehensive solution for

oil spill recovery, cleanup, and prevention

T. C. Mike Chung

Department of Materials Science and EngineeringThe Pennsylvania State University

University park, PA 16802 USA

2019 OSPR-Chevron Response Technology Workshop

Spill Oil in Water

• When an oil spill occurs on the water, several oil weathering processes (i.e. spreading, evaporation, emulsification, dissolution, oxidation, etc.) immediately take place.

• The emulsified crude contains up to 80% water.

The first hours of action are most critical in determining the effectiveness of later recovery, removal, and disposal, as well as the level of environmental impact.

Current Oil Sorbents

Adsorption mechanism only happen on fiber surface (weak interaction)Re-bleeding of the adsorbed oil under a slight external force

Natural Organic Materials: Corn cobs, Sugarcane pulp, Feathers, etc.Natural Inorganic Materials: Sand, Clay, Volcanic ash, etc.

Synthetic Polymers: PP, PE, and other polymers

• Crystalline polymer fibers with large interstices opening• Accommodate oils via capillary action• Sorption capacity (~10 times of polymer weight).

Low sorption capacity (more water than oil) and waste disposal issues

i-Petrogel Oil-Absorbent Material

• Both polymers are polyolefin (oil-refined

products) that can be thermally decomposed

back to oil molecules

• Good flexibility in material design (morphology,

mechanical property)

• High free volume (fast kinetics)

US Patent 9,861,954Journal of Hazardous Materials 2018, 351, 285-292

IPN Molecular Structure and Porous Morphology

How the i-Petrogel works

Absorption Mechanism:• Swelled matrix by oils• Stop weathering• No-rebleeding

A Comprehensive Solution: No Waste and Zero Pollution

ANS Oil Absorption Profiles Using i-Petrogel

i-Petrogel with 1/1 weight ratio is suitable for ANS oil recovery, in terms of absorption capacity and kinetics and material handling ability.

Evaporation and Emulsification

ANS oil absorbed by i-Petrogel (30/1)on sea water in air at ambient tempt.

1st day After 10 days

Less than 1% weight change

Water Content in the Recovered ANS Oil

GC-Mass spectra of (a) i-Petrogel-0.2 (1/1 wt. ratio)/ANS oil, (b) i-Petrogel-0.02 (1/1 wt. ratio)/ANS oil, and (c) ANS oil.

Reusability of ANS Oil/i-Petrogel

Operational Test at Ohmsett Facility

Effective recovery by the rotating drum-skimmer

Recovery of ANS Crude Oil (Ohmsett Facility)

Skimming Pumping

Summary

• High absorption capacity 40 times by weight with viscous (crude) oils at 25 and 0 oC

• Fast oil absorption kinetics, reaching 80-90% saturation in 2-3 hours.

• Stop weathering (spreading, evaporation, and emulsification) of spill oil.

• Easy recovery of spill oil by skimmer.

• The recovered oil contains no water and can be refined by regular refining process.

• Economic feasible. Perspective Paper in Macromolecules 2013, 46, 6671

Acknowledgement

Financial Supported by BSEE

My research team at PSU: Dr. Changwoo Nam,

Houxiang Li, Dr. Xuepei Yuan, and Dr. Gang Zhang

Kristi McKinney (BSEE) designing and carrying out operational and simulation tests

Ohmsett team headed by Alan Guarino

i-Petrogel; A comprehensive solution for

oil spill recovery, cleanup, and prevention US Patent 9,109,057

US Patent 9,688,895

US Patent 9,861,954

US Trademark "PetroGel" Reg. No. 4,768,875

Petrogel: New Hydrocarbon (Oil) Absorbent Based on Polyolefin Polymers, C.W. Nam, H. Li, G. Zhang, and T. C. Mike Chung, Macromolecules 2016, 49, 5427-5437.

Polyolefin-based interpenetrating polymer network absorbent for crude oil entrapment and recovery in aqueous system, Changwoo Nam, Gang Zhang, T. C. Mike Chung, Journal of Hazardous Materials 2018, 351, 285-292.

Practical Oil Spill Recovery by A Combination of New Polyolefin Absorbent and Mechanical Skimmer, Changwoo Nam, Houxiang Li, Gang Zhang, Logan R. Lutz, Behzad Nazari, Ralph H. Colby, T. C. Mike Chung, ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering 2018, 6, 12036-12045.

PetroGel oil absorbents are currently commercialized by Polymics Ltd. located at State College, PA.