Synthesis of MnO2/poly(n-butylacrylate-co-butyl methacrylate-co-methyl methacrylate) hybrid resins for efficient oils and organic solvents absorption

Abstract Oil-absorbing materials with three-dimensional network structure are being actively investigated due to their application in the treatment of oil spills and chemical leakage which result from their controllable porous structures and swelling properties. In this work, the oil-absorbing MnO 2 /poly( n -butylacrylate- co -butyl methacrylate- co -methyl methacrylate) resin composite (MnO 2 /p(BA-co-BMA-co-MMA)) was synthesized by using a combined hydrothermal method and microwave polymerization method, and was successfully applied to absorb oils and organic solvents. In this synthesis, the MnO 2 hollow spheres were prepared via a simple hydrothermal method and modified by γ-methacryloxypropyl trimethoxysilane (KH-570) under microwave irradiation. Then, the MnO 2 /p(BA-co-BMA-co-MMA) hybrid resin with good oil absorption capacity and excellent recyclability were synthesized through suspension polymerization by a microwave polymerization route. The as-prepared samples were characterized by Fourier transmission infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), contact angle, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), etc. The as-prepared porous-structured MnO 2 that are comprised of individual microrods possess self-organized shaggy, ball-shaped architectures with sizes ranging from 2 to 4 μm. In order to obtain the hydrophobic surfaces, the surfaces of MnO 2 microspheres were chemically modified by KH-570 under microwave irradiation. And the surface of modified MnO 2 show high repellency towards water with a water contact angle of 135°. Moreover, the absorption properties of the MnO 2 /p(BA-co-BMA-co-MMA) hybrid resins were tested in this work. The results indicated that the oil absorption properties were strongly influenced by the content of MnO 2 hollow spheres. Furthermore, the MnO 2 /p(BA-co-BMA-co-MMA) hybrid resin has a maximum absorption capacities of 34.56 g*g −1 , 31.82 g*g −1 and 25.89 g*g −1 for the absorption of chloroform, carbon tetrachloride and toluene respectively and could selectively remove oils from water which is promising for their potential applications in oil spill cleanup.