High-hydrophobic ZIF-8@PLA composite aerogel and application for oil-water separation

Herein, a hierarchical porous [email protected] composite aerogel was prepared by combining metal–organic skeleton ZIF-8 nanoparticles with polylactic acid (PLA) aerogel matrix by physical blending and thermally induced phase separation with the assistance of water. By changing the ZIF-8 ratio in the aerogel, the pore size, pore surface roughness, and specific surface area of the aerogel can be controlled and adjusted successfully. Compared with pure PLA aerogels, the prepared [email protected] aerogels have higher oil wettability and significantly improved mechanical properties. The morphology, wettability, adsorption capacity, circulating oil–water separation capacity, and oil adsorption capacity of the composite aerogels were thoroughly investigated. The results show that [email protected] aerogel with 1 wt% ZIF-8 exhibits the highest oil wettability, the largest specific surface area, the highest oil–water separation performance, and good reusability in oil–water separation. The tensile strength and breaking elongation of [email protected] aerogel with 1 wt% ZIF-8 are raised to 0.257 MPa and 23%, while those of pure PLA membranes are 0.135 MPa and 13%, respectively. The [email protected] aerogel has been proved to be an ideal material for efficient oil–water separation due to the rapid oil wetting capacity, pore roughness, and synergistic adsorption of ZIF-8 porous nanoparticles.