Creating of highly hydrophobic sorbent with fluoroalkyl silane cross-linker for efficient oil-water separation

Hydrophobic sorbents with good hydrophobicity and high porosity have drawn attention for removing oil spills from water. In this study, a highly reusable hybrid polymeric sorbent was successfully fabricated by the reaction of Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and fluorinated alkyl silanes via bulk polymerization without using any activator, initiator, or catalyst. The fabricated polymer sorbent exhibits good hydrophobicity and porous structure; thus, it can be applied as a sorbent for the removal of oils from wastewater. The hybrid sorbents presented high hydrophobicity and excellent sorption capacity for a variety of oils and organic liquids, and the sorption capacity ranges between ~500–1800%. Due to its hydrophobic structure, it can selectively absorb oil from the bottom and the water surface, immediately. Its easy one-pot fabrication procedure, high oil sorption capacity, quick sorption-desorption cycles and great reusability without any capacity loss make it a very promising material for oil spill applications. [Display omitted] •Hybrid sorbents were fabricated using fluoroalkylsilane and different molecular weights of PDMS.•Hydrophobic sorbents exhibited high interest towards oils while they didn't show any absorption ability in water.•The obtained sorbents can selectively absorb oil both from the water surface and the bottom, rapidly.•They can be reused at least 20 times without any capacity loss.•Oil removal efficiency after each cycle was found to be about 100%.