Method for treating oil

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10190277-B2
Application number	US-201615065547-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 9, 2016
Priority date	Mar 9, 2015
Publication date	Jan 29, 2019
Grant date	Jan 29, 2019

Abstract

A method for treating an oil spill includes providing a polystyrene-based sorbent in the form of polystyrene microfibers having a sorption capacity in the range of between 30 g/g to 217 g/g, measured as grams of oil sorbed per one gram of the sorbent; drenching the polystyrene microfibers in the oil spill to be treated; collecting the oil drenched polystyrene microfibers; and removing excess oil from the oil drenched polystyrene microfibers by compressing the microfibers. The method further includes dissolving the oil drenched polystyrene microfibers in a petroleum-based solvent in the form of gasoline having an octane number of ninety one, in which both the oil drenched polystyrene microfibers and the oil is soluble, thereby forming a solution comprising the gasoline having dissolved therein the polystyrene microfibers and the oil; and utilizing the solution as a feedstock for feeding a refinery.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for treating oil, the method comprising:
providing a polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent;
drenching the polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent in the oil to be treated;
dissolving the oil drenched polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent in a petroleum-based solvent in which both the oil drenched polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent and the oil is soluble to form a homogenous solution comprising the petroleum-based solvent having dissolved therein the polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent and the oil;
utilizing the solution as a feedstock for feeding a conventional petroleum refinery; and
converting the solution into conventional petroleum products.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent has a sufficiently high sorption capacity so as to result in a sufficiently low ratio in the solution of polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent to oil, to render the solution suitable as the feedstock for feeding the refinery.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent has a sorption capacity in the range of between 30 g/g to 217 g/g, measured as grams of oil sorbed per one gram of the polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein after drenching the polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent in the oil to be treated, the method further includes collecting the oil drenched polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent are electrospun microfibers.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the polystyrene based microfiber sorbent are formed from recycled material.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the petroleum-based solvent is selected from the group comprising gasoline, kerosene and gas oil.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7 , wherein the petroleum-based solvent is gasoline.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the gasoline has an octane number in the range of between 78 and 95.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9 , wherein the gasoline has an octane number of ninety one.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the solution comprises hydrocarbons and as such, the solution has a suitable chemical composition to serve as the feedstock for the refinery.

12. The method for treating oil as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the step of providing the polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent comprises electrospinning polystyrene to produce said polystyrene-based microfiber sorbent.

Assignees

• Univ United Arab Emirates

Inventors

• Al Azab Al Naqbi Mohamed
• E Greish Yaser
• Al Blooshi Afra

Classifications

• B09C1/00

  Reclamation of contaminated soil · CPC title

• E02B15/04 Primary

  Devices for cleaning or keeping clear the surface of open water from oil or like floating materials by separating or removing these materials ({stopping water-borne material in artificial water canals E02B5/085; stopping water-borne material at barrages or weirs E02B8/023}; other treatment of water, waste water or sewage C02F; materials for treating liquid pollutants, e.g. oil, gasoline, fat, C09K3/32 {; separation of oil in sewage conduits E03F5/16}) · CPC title

• B09C2101/00

  In situ · CPC title

• D01D5/003

  the material being a polymer solution or dispersion (D01D5/0053 takes precedence) · CPC title

• D01F6/22

  from polystyrene · CPC title