All Content © CRC CARE 2007

Project number:
2-5-02-05/06

Project status:
In progress

Tailoring clean-up agents

Summary

Oil and fuel spills are costly, common and damaging events worldwide. However certain clay and iron-based minerals and substances like cotton fibre display exceptional ability to mop up toxic hydrocarbon contaminants. This leading-edge work by CRC CARE is developing a new understanding of the precise characteristics of these materials that enable them to adsorb contaminants in a range of conditions, as well as enhancing their ability to clean up particular pollutants. Target contaminants in this research include organic contaminants (not only oil spills) and heavy metals, with a focus on the clean-up properties of modified clays.

Project description

The project aims to develop soil and water remediation technologies using natural clays, which are a relatively inexpensive and extensive resource in Australia, with their high surface area, good ion exchange properties and proven long-term stability in the surface environment.

Journal publications

Carmody, O, Frost, R, Xi, Y & Kokot, S 2007, 'Surface characterisation of selected sorbent materials for common hydrocarbon fuels', Surface Science 601(9): 2066-2076.

Frost, RL, Zhou, Q, He, H & Xi, Y 2007, 'An infrared study of adsorption of para-nitrophenol on mono-, di- and tri-alkyl surfactant intercalated organoclays', Spectrochimica Acta Part A 69: 239-244.

Kopittke, PM, Asher, CJ & Menzies, NW 2007, 'Prediction of Pb speciation in commonly used nutrient solutions', Environmental Pollution 153, 548-554.

Xi, Y, Zhou, Q, Frost, R & He, H 2007, 'Thermal stability of octadecyltrimethylammonium bromide modified montmorillonite', Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 311(2): 347-353.

Zhou, Q, He, H, Frost, RL & Xi, Y 2008, ‘Changes in the surfaces on DDOAB organoclays adsorbed with paranitrophenol – An XRD, TEM and TG study’, Materials Research Bulletin 43(12), 3318–3326.

Zhou, Q, Frost, RL, He, H & Xi, Y 2007, 'Changes in the surfaces of adsorbed paranitrophenol on HDTMA organoclay – the XRD and TG study', Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 307(1): 50-55.

Zhou, Q, Frost, RL, He, H & Xi, Y 2007, 'Changes in the surfaces of adsorbed p-nitrophenol on methyltrioctadecylammonium bromide organoclay – an XRD, TG and infrared spectroscopy study', Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 314, 405-414.

Zhou, Q, Frost, RL, He, H, Xi, Y & Liu, H 2007, 'Adsorbed paranitrophenol on HDTMAB organoclay – a TEM and infrared spectroscopic study', Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 307(2): 357-363.

Zhou, Q, Frost, RL, He, H, Xi, Y & Zbik, M 2007, 'TEM, XRD and thermal stability of adsorbed paranitrophenol on DDOAB organoclay', Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 311(1): 24-37.

Zhou, Q, He, H, Frost, RL & Xi, Y 2007, 'Adsorption of p-Nitrophenol on mono-, di-, and trialkyl surfactant-intercalated organoclays: A comparative study', Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 111(20), 7487-7493.
 

Conference papers

Sarkar, B, Xi, Y, Mallavarapu, M, Krishnamurti, GSR & Naidu,R 2009, ‘Adsorption of hexavalent chromium by bentonite organoclays’, in 3rd International Contaminated Site Remediation Conference: Program and Proceedings, CleanUp 09, Adelaide 27-30 September, pp.184-185.

Project Leader


Dr Yunfei Xi
University of South Australia
yunfei.xi@unisa.edu.au