Preparation of superhydrophobic and superoleophilic polylactic acid nonwoven filter for oil/Water separation

Superhydrophobic and superoleophilic surfaces exhibit a remarkable feature in separation of oil from oily wastewaters. In this work, a green superhydrophobic/ superoleophilic polylactic acid (PLA) nonwoven filter was prepared via a non-solvent assisted phase separation method. The results showed addition of non-solvent endowed the PLA nonwoven filter with typical micro/nano hierarchical structures and high porosity. Moreover, the resultant filter exhibited excellent oil/water separation efficiency more than 95% for various kinds of oils or solvents. In addition, the filter maintained favorable recycle ability even after 20 separation cycles. Therefore, the PLA nonwoven filter showed a high separation efficiency and an excellent recyclability, which is potential in rapid separation of oil/water mixture for ocean pollution cleanup.