Modified chemical structures of cardanol extracted from cashew nut shell oil, and the use of the same to prepare imidazolium ionic liquids (IILs). The IILs can be used to prepare different types of silica, magnetite and calcium carbonate nanoparticles (NPs) as multifunctional oilfield chemicals for use in various oil spill collection, de-emulsification, viscosity improvement, asphaltene dispersant, and enhanced oil recovery applications.

Disclosed herein are aggregators that can be cellulosic particles having high oil sorption capacity, high hydrophobicity, high buoyancy in water, and an aggregation quality that can support environmental remediation of hydrocarbon spills (e.g., crude oil spills) by various cleanup strategies including burning, skimming, or bioremediation. Also disclosed are methods of making the materials and methods of using the materials for environmental remediation

The present invention provides improved methods for purifying and/or removing oily particles, and/or contaminants suspended or dissolved in water. In particular the process relates to an additive composition that has the appropriate surfactant characteristics for effectively removing an oil phase from an oil/aqueous mixed phase via foam fractionation. According to the invention, a hydrophobically modified polymer that acts as an associative thickener is combined with surfactant in appropriate ratios to facilitate oil removal for water purification in any of a number of commercial, environmental and industrial applications.

A method of recovering crude oil from crude oil drenched adsorbent and simultaneously regenerating the adsorbent to render it suitable for re-use in crude oil adsorption. The method includes contacting crude oil drenched adsorbent, in the form of solid nanofibrous expanded polystyrene drenched with adsorbed crude oil, with a non-polar solvent, thereby obtaining regenerated crude oil lean adsorbent and crude oil rich solvent.

Pelagic Sargasso nowadays is an inopportune event that invades beaches. This method has many aspects in consideration to successfully grow Sargasso in huge amounts in a designated area. It also discloses many Sargasso Nursery Structures that adapt to different areas and purposes. This method also discloses where and how to set the nurseries in a way that the Sargasso mass can be used or delivered avoiding heavy costs of shipping.

A device and method for dispersing oil on water comprises a rig structure for being mounted in a vessel, the rig structure including a front transverse structure with at least one nozzle for flushing with pressurized water supplied from a pressure facility located on the vessel.

Methods for reducing the size of an oil slick on a water surface or on a water surface when ice is present are described. Spreading of oil can be reversed by reducing the surface tension of the seawater, for example, by using a low concentration of at least one water-soluble surfactant, such as a non-ionic surfactant. A controlled amount of the surfactant or surfactant mixture may be discharged over time at the inner-wall of a spill control boom surrounding the oil spill, or within the vicinity of the oil spill in the absence of control booms using a soaker hose or a floating polyethylene or polypropylene hose impregnated with surfactant, whereby the confinement and contraction of the oil slick is maintained by compensating for dissolved surfactant and surfactant moving away from the oil slick. Water-soluble surfactants are typically solids or gels at low temperatures when no organic co-solvent is added to the surfactant. The solid or gel form is advantageous for generating slow, but continuous release of surfactant, and thus there is no need for an organic co-solvent. This is not the situation for oil-soluble surfactants, which require an organic co-solvent to be successfully applied at low temperatures. Mixing oil-soluble surfactants with water-soluble surfactants may overcome the problem of dispersing oil-soluble surfactant without an organic co-solvent at low temperatures.

A method is described for controlling an oil spill by seeding micron-sized magnetizable particles in the oil. Once seeded, particles can form a unique and preferential bond with the oil resulting in creation of a colloidal mixture. This bond forms as a result of a combination of forces including the intermolecular Van der Waal forces. Once this bond is formed, the oil is rendered magnetic and can be controlled and moved in response to a magnetic field. This can include removing oil from water, reducing the diffusion rate of oil on water, magnetically lifting oil from water or nonporous surfaces, as well as separating the magnetic material from the oil.

The present invention provides a method for removing petroleum and other liquid hydrocarbons from a body of water, using an environmentally friendly and inexpensive bi-component granular compound with sorption and buoyant properties, wherein one of the components of the compound is a microporous absorbent material that due to its high sorption capacity, is effective in removing petroleum and other liquid hydrocarbons from the surface of a body of water, and another component is a macroporous buoyant material with closed cell structure, the subsequent extraction of the absorbent compound impregnated with petroleum and other liquid hydrocarbons from the body of water, with further hydrocarbon recovery by distillation, and microporous component re-activation, that are carried out inside a fluidized bed reactor, using superheated steam, a method of bi-component granular floating absorbent compound manufacturing.

A collection kit for the removal of unwanted material from a surface, said kit comprising: iv) ferromagnetic material to absorb and/or adsorb the unwanted material when spread across the unwanted material creating an area of operation; v) an apparatus having a magnetic source operable to attract the ferromagnetic material together with absorbed and/or adsorbed unwanted material when the magnetic source is touching or in the vicinity of the area of operation; and vi) means to dislodge the ferromagnetic material and absorbed and/or adsorbed unwanted material from the apparatus once the ferromagnetic material has been removed from the area of operation.