There is provided a novel composition for enhancing the quality of oily wastewater, the composition comprising oil shale ash particles physically bonded to a polymer matrix. There is also provided a method for preparing the composition, and a method for treating oily wastewater using the composition thereof.

The invention is both a product and a method for the safe, harmless and effective remediation of oil spills on water and on land. The oil can then be successfully recovered from the product for use. The invention also allows for the reuse of two waste productspost consumer plastics and coal combustion productinto a material that is used for the clean-up of oil spills and for site remediation. Furthermore, the used product can be reprocessed post use into more usable product.

The invention relates to a hydrophobed porous oil binder in the form of a nonwoven fabric composed of lignocellulose-containing raw materials having a biologically functionalized surface for removing mineral-oil-based contaminants in seas, rivers, inland waters, and stormwater basins or wastewater treatment plants, wherein the density of the oil binder is 10 to 900 kg/m.sup.3, the oil binder is 1 to 25 mm thick, the broad surface of the oil binder has a dimension of 9 to 200 cm.sup.2, the porosity of the oil binder is 30 to 96%, measured with respect to the total fraction of the oil binder, and the flexural strength of the oil binder is at least 1.5 N/mm.sup.2.

A composition and method are disclosed for forming lignin-containing floccules from dissolved lignin, lignin nanoparticles, lignin colloids, or lignin-containing cellulose nanofibers. The floccules may be used to clean oil-contaminated materials such as oil-contaminated plastics or oil-contaminated water. The polymers and oil may then be recovered for further use, without requiring organic solvents.

A filter for controlling a pH of purified water is disclosed. The pH-controlling filter according to an aspect of the present disclosure may include a water permeable filter having a hollow formed in a center of a cross-section from one end to the other end; a lower stopper closing a lower end of the water permeable filter, a filling unit inserted into the hollow of the water permeable filter to form an inner space, the filling unit having an inlet through which the purified water passing through the water permeable filter flows into the inner space and an outlet through which the purified water passing through the inner space flows out; and control particles filled in the inner space of the filling unit to adjust a pH of the purified water passing through the inner space of the filling unit and comprising OH group-generating particles configured to supplement the purified water passing through the inner space with OH groups.

Described herein are biological devices and methods for using the same to produce carbo sugars. The biological devices include microbial cells transformed with a DNA construct containing genes for producing a cellulose synthase and galactomannan galactosyltransferase. In some instances, the biological devices also include a gene for lipase. Methods for altering the viscosity of petroleum oil using the carbo sugars are also described herein. Finally, methods for degreasing or decontaminating water mixed with petroleum oil or other fatty substances or a surface coated with petroleum oil or other fatty substances using the carbo sugars are described herein.

The present invention includes a method of controlling an oil spill through introduction of a plurality of magnetizable particles into the oil spill in an amount sufficient to form a colloidal mixture. An absorbent is, also introduced into the oil spill to form an absorbent mixture. A magnetic field can be applied to the system to move, manipulate, or otherwise control the absorbent mixture in response to movement of the magnetic field.

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.

A water treatment composition is disclosed herein comprising a nonylphenol resin and a polyethoxylated tallow amine.

Methods for synthesizing macroscale 3D heteroatom-doped carbon nanotube materials (such as boron doped carbon nanotube materials) and compositions thereof. Macroscopic quantities of three-dimensionally networked heteroatom-doped carbon nanotube materials are directly grown using an aerosol-assisted chemical vapor deposition method. The porous heteroatom-doped carbon nanotube material is created by doping of heteroatoms (such as boron) in the nanotube lattice during growth, which influences the creation of elbow joints and branching of nanotubes leading, to the three dimensional super-structure. The super-hydrophobic heteroatom-doped carbon nanotube sponge is strongly oleophilic and can soak up large quantities of organic solvents and oil. The trapped oil can be burnt off and the heteroatom-doped carbon nanotube material can be used repeatedly as an oil removal scaffold. Optionally, the heteroatom-doped carbon nanotubes in the heteroatom-doped carbon nanotube materials can be welded to form one or more macroscale 3D carbon nanotubes.