Synthesis of Stable Castor/Polysulfide for Fabrication of Recyclable Super-Hydrophobic Filters for Oil–Water Separation via Green Chemistry

Abstract

In this research, we discussed the concept of green chemistry and sustainable development in the synthesis of polymers by designing a simple and practical experiment. Initially, a renewable and stable polysulfide with high sulfur content was synthesized by reverse vulcanization of elemental sulfur and castor oil. Then, this castor oil/polysulfide (CPS) hydrophobic polysulfide was coated on the linen fabric to obtain a super-hydrophobic filter. The coated polysulfide filters were identified using X-ray energy diffraction (EDX), scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and X-ray-map methods. Finally, the use of super-hydrophobic linen fabric filters for separating two-phase oil–water compounds was investigated. High separation efficiency as well as near-complete separation removal of the aqueous phase are the advantages of linen fabric filters. Also, no significant change in separation efficiency was observed after 10 recycling times. This research uses simple and available natural materials for the synthesis of new polymers and the construction of strong super-hydrophobic filters for the separation of water and oil by examining visible and attractive evidence for chemistry students, in the third year of the bachelor’s degree, in the organic chemistry laboratory based on green chemistry, and the principles of sustainable development are reviewed.