Evaluation of nanoemulsions in the cleaning of polymeric resins

The development of nanotechnology has opened the way for applications in a wide range of fields. Nanoemulsions have attracted great interest because the properties of emulsions are enhanced as the interfacial film approaches equilibrium when formed by droplets of nanometric sizes. In the present study, Solbrax/water/polyoxyethylene nanoemulsions were produced by high-energy emulsification in a high-pressure homogenizer. The droplets of the stable nanoemulsions had diameter size in the range of 7–30 nm. These nanoemulsions were used in cleaning of a microporous polymer resin, which can be used to treat oily water. This resin was contaminated with different crude oils. In all cases, the nanoemulsions presented cleaning efficiency above of 90%.

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► Polymeric resins are adsorbent materials used in the treatment of oily water.
► But they need regeneration when they reach saturation.
► The nanoemulsions present characteristics to be utilized as regenerating fluids.
► We produced stable nanoemulsions based on Solbrax by the high-energy method.
► These were used in the regeneration of a polymeric resin microporous.