Physicochemical characteristics and oil sorption behaviours of novel polymeric materials based on modifications of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) fibres

The aim of the current study is to modify water hyacinth fibre (WHF), which are then used to produce novel oil sorption polymers. Two synthetic materials were derived from acetylation by acetic anhydride using N-bromosuccinimide (NBS) as a catalyst and the graft co-polymerisation of butyl acrylate (BA) using 2,2′-azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as an initiator. Physicochemical properties were comprehensively characterised by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, contact angle, and thermogravimetric analysis. In the seawater/crude oil system, the best oil sorption capacity values of the raw WHFs and their acetylated-WHF and graft co-polymer WHF-g-BA were 7.46 g/g, 20.16 g/g, and 25.47 g/g, respectively. The sorption kinetic and isotherm studies exhibited that the oil sorption of the co-polymer WHF-g-BA is ruled by pseudo-second-order kinetic and Freundlich isotherm models. The reusability of the WHFs and their synthetic materials has reached 6 cycles of sorption/desorption, and this property of the co-polymer is always better than that of acetylated and original fibres.