Morphological variations of micro-nanofibrous sorbents prepared by electrospinning and their effects on the sorption of crude oil

• Polystyrene nano- and microfibrous sorbents are prepared by an optimized electrospinning method.
• Fibrous sorbents are successfully used for the removal of crude oil spills from simulated sea water media.
• Sorption capacities depend on the fibers characteristics as enacted by varying the elecrospinning parameters.

Crude oil spills have both a high environmental and economic impact, ensuring that its removal is an international concern. To aid in its removal, sorbents make of pure and recycled polystyrene (PS) polymers in the form of microfibers have been utilized in this regards. With an electrospinning (ES) technique used to make the fibrous sorbents. These sorbents have both a high surface area and a high degree of hydrophobicity. The effects of varying the electrospinning parameters, on the affinity of the fibrous sorbents prepared thereafter toward oil spills in artificial polluted seawater media was investigated. Such parameters include the polymer type, solvent type, applied voltage, feeding rate, spinning distance, degree of relative humidity and the internal diameter of the spinning nozzles. Results showed a strong correlation between fiber characteristics and their affinity toward the sorption of oil spills. A step-by-step optimization of the electrospinning parameters was shown to enhance the performance of the fibrous sorbents toward the treatment of crude oil spills.