Assessment of raw luffa as a natural hollow oleophilic fibrous sorbent for oil spill cleanup

Abstract

Oil spills have a global concern due to its environmental and economical impact. Various commercial systems have been developed to control these spills, including the use of fibers as sorbents. However, plant biomass is renewable resource that can be converted into useful materials and energy. Luffa, an agricultural waste, was used as a sorbent material. The present study examines the adsorption capacity of raw luffa fibers for different types of oil and water pickup. The investigation revealed that the efficiency of fibers to remove crude oil from sea water was related to the surface properties of the fibers, concentration of the oil, amount of the fibers, as well as the temperature of the crude oil. The results show high sorption efficiency of luffa fibers for different kinds of oil. This sorbent also exhibited a good reusability since the decrease in sorption efficiency did not exceed 50% of the initial value after three sorption cycles.