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    Applying a switchable superhydrophobic and hydrophilic ZnO nanorod array-coated stainless-steel mesh to electrically-induced oil/water separation

    Year: 2021

    Journal: Colloid Surf. A-Physicochem. Eng. Asp., Volume 628, NOV 5

    Authors: Gao, Qianhong; Zhao, Jianchang; Hu, Jiangtao; Wang, Minglei

    Organizations: State Key Laboratory of NBC Protection for Civilian - State Key Labo-ratory for Modification of Chemical Fibers and Polymer Materials, Donghua University

    Keywords: Stainless-steel mesh; Reversible superhydrophobicity-hydrophilicity; Oil-water separation; Durability

    Herein, we report on fabrication of a highly durable smart mesh with reversible superhydrophobicityhydrophilicity, using a two-step surface modification and hydrothermal process for on-demand oil-water separation. This wettability of transformation can be achieved under lower voltage within a few seconds than the reported literatures. Such an on-demand operation could be beneficially applied to automated and remote operation of oil-water separation situations, which would be very useful for the treatment of various effluents, including those with low levels of radioactivity. The reversible wettability not only makes our material applicable in both oil-removing and water-removing situations, with a separation efficiency of 99%, but also effectively prevents the mesh film from being contaminated with oil. The material developed in this work retained its high separation efficiency after 10 alternate-use cycles, involving oil-removing and water-removing modes, and sonication for 20 min, demonstrating its high durability. Our study provides a new pathway to improve the interface binding force between ZnO nanorod arrays and its support without affecting electrowetting performance, thus potentially making a useful contribution to the design of novel devices based on electrowetting-driven oil-water separation.
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