Embodiments of a floating oil absorption apparatus of the present invention generally include a container having one or more orifices in at least one exterior surface thereof and an oil-absorbent material, wherein the container, with the oil-absorbent material disposed therein, floats in water such that the water can flow into and out of the container, thereby coming into contact with the oil-absorbent material. Methods of using embodiments of the floating oil absorption apparatus are provided.

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 method for removing oil from a body of water including providing a matrix having a longitudinally-directed column defined by oil-absorbing and/or oil-adsorbing blankets each affixed independently of each other to a connecting strip that extends along the length of the column; deploying the matrix to a body of water to bring the column into contact with the body of water; inducing tension in the connecting strip to move blankets of the column in unison relative to the body of water; collecting oil with the first and second blankets; and removing the blankets and at least a portion of the oil collected thereby. Also, an oil spill removal system including such a matrix and in which, during matrix movement in the longitudinal direction, drag on a following blanket of a matrix column is carried by the connecting strip rather than by a preceding blanket of that column.

A water absorbing and releasing body that absorbs water in engine oil and releases water when the temperature of the engine oil is high in order to maintain the performance of the engine oil, automotive parts including the water absorbing and releasing body, and a method for producing the water absorbing and releasing body for engine oil.

The present invention relates to compositions and methods for the remediation of contaminated solids and liquids. In particular, embodiments of the present invention relate to the bioremediation of solids and liquids by a composition comprising a biocatalyst or mixture of biocatalysts. The present invention also relates to methods for producing the bioremediation compositions and methods for applying the bioremediation compositions to contaminated sites, including treatment, storage, and disposal facilities, as well as various contaminated water sources, such as aquifers and reservoirs.

Provided is an integral 3D graphene-carbon hybrid foam composed of multiple pores and pore walls, wherein the pore walls contain single-layer or few-layer graphene sheets chemically bonded by a carbon material having a carbon material-to-graphene weight ratio from 1/100 to 1/2, wherein the few-layer graphene sheets have 2-10 layers of stacked graphene planes having an inter-plane spacing d.sub.002 from 0.3354 nm to 0.40 nm and the graphene sheets contain a pristine graphene material having essentially zero % of non-carbon elements, or a non-pristine graphene material having 0.01% to 25% by weight of non-carbon elements wherein said non-pristine graphene is selected from graphene oxide, reduced graphene oxide, graphene fluoride, graphene chloride, graphene bromide, graphene iodide, hydrogenated graphene, nitrogenated graphene, doped graphene, chemically functionalized graphene, or a combination thereof. Also provided are a process for producing the hybrid form, products containing the hybrid foam, and its applications.

Provided are methods of petroleum sequestration, which use electrospun microtubes capable of sequestering the petroleum from the water, and method of depleting and optionally degrading petroleum from water using floating devices which comprise the electrospun microtube attached to a floating carrier.

Provided is an integral 3D graphene-carbon hybrid foam composed of multiple pores and pore walls, wherein the pore walls contain single-layer or few-layer graphene sheets chemically bonded by a carbon material having a carbon material-to-graphene weight ratio from 1/100 to 1/2, wherein the few-layer graphene sheets have 2-10 layers of stacked graphene planes having an inter-plane spacing d.sub.002 from 0.3354 nm to 0.40 nm and the graphene sheets contain a pristine graphene material having essentially zero % of non-carbon elements, or a non-pristine graphene material having 0.01% to 25% by weight of non-carbon elements wherein said non-pristine graphene is selected from graphene oxide, reduced graphene oxide, graphene fluoride, graphene chloride, graphene bromide, graphene iodide, hydrogenated graphene, nitrogenated graphene, doped graphene, chemically functionalized graphene, or a combination thereof. Also provided are a process for producing the hybrid form, products containing the hybrid foam, and its applications.

The invention relates to a method for aggregating and separating an organic material mixture which is provided in a dissolved form in an aqueous emulsion. The method is characterized by the following steps: a) providing an aqueous emulsion with organic compounds which are provided in the emulsion in a dissolved form, said organic compounds being carboxylic acids, phospholipids, glycolipids, glyceroglycolipids, phenols, sterols, chlorophyll, and/or sinapines, b) mixing the emulsion from step a) with an aqueous solution containing copper(II) ions and/or calcium ions until an aggregate formation is achieved, and c) separating the aggregates from step b) by means of a sedimentation, filtration, or centrifugation process after achieving an aggregated phase of the organic compounds from step b).

The present invention discloses magnetically recoverable, high surface area carbon-Fe.sub.3O.sub.4 nanocomposite prepared by thermolysis of metal organic framework useful for recovery of oil, dyes and pollutants. Also disclosed are methods of removing an oleophilic material from a solution by treating the solution with a carbon-Fe.sub.3O.sub.4 nanocomposite.