Study on the ability of lignocellulosic materials to absorb crude oil from aqueous media

Crude oil is a toxic product for biological systems and is an important contaminant in the marine environment. So far, many methods have been used to clean up oil pollution in the seas, one of which is purification by a variety of adsorbents. In this study, wood lignocellulosic sorbents of poplar species in three forms of sawdust, straw, and wood chips and fibers in three forms of chemical, mechanical and recycled pulp were investigated for the cleanup of oil contamination from the water surface. Also, the effect of adsorbent weight, temperature, and crude oil concentration, each in three levels, were other variables in this study. The results of the studies showed that the absorption rate of crude by the six different adsorbents with different weights and temperatures had a significant difference. Also, the results showed that among the adsorbents, mechanical pulp having the absorption rate of 90.5% and wood chips having the absorption rate of 39% had the highest and the lowest amount of purification of crude oil from aqueous media.