Ronald Wijaya, Kuan-Chen Cheng, Shella Permatasari Santoso, Shin-Ping Lin, Jindrayani Nyoo Putro, Jenni Lie, Chang-Wei Hsieh, Hsien-Yi Hsu, Alchris Woo Go, Artik Elisa Angkawijaya
An environmentally friendly absorbent sponge was successfully developed for diesel spill remediation via alginate polymer crosslinking followed by surface modification using tannic acid and dodecanethiol (TA/Do). The optimal sponge was obtained with a 3 h crosslinking duration, achieving a balance between absorption performance and structural durability, while longer crosslinking times led to increased density and reduced efficiency. Surface modification imparted hydrophobicity to the alginate sponge, confirmed by a water contact angle of 120.2°, and the successful incorporation of TA/Do was confirmed from FTIR and XPS analysis. The modified sponge (AA-3-TA/Do) exhibited a diesel absorption capacity of 17.54 g/g—a 36 % increase over the unmodified form—and retained ∼90 % of this capacity after 34 absorption–desorption cycles. Kinetic modeling showed that diesel was rapidly absorbed during early contact, with faster uptake than water. A cytotoxicity assay confirmed its non-toxic nature, indicating environmental compatibility. This study demonstrates that a simple, scalable modification using accessible materials can significantly enhance oil sorbent performance without requiring complex techniques or hazardous reagents. © 2025 Elsevier B.V.
Chemical Engineering Department, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei, 10607, Taiwan; Institute of Food Science and Technology, National Taiwan University, Daan District, Taipei City, 10617, Taiwan; Institute of Biotechnology, National Taiwan University, No. 1, Sec. 4, Roosevelt Rd., Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Optometry, Asia University, 500, Lioufeng Rd., Wufeng, Taichung, Taiwan; Department of Medical Research, China Medical University Hospital, China Medical University, 91, Hsueh-Shih Rd., Taichung, Taiwan; Department of Food Science, Fu Jen Catholic University, No. 510, Zhongzheng Rd., Xinzhuang Dist., New Taipei City, 242062, Taiwan; Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Katolik Widya Mandala Surabaya, Jl. Kalijudan No. 37, East Java, Surabaya, 60114, Indonesia; Chemical Engineering Master Program, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Katolik Widya Mandala Surabaya, Jl. Kalijudan No. 37, East Java, Surabaya, 60114, Indonesia; Collaborative Research Center for Zero Waste and Sustainability, Universitas Katolik Widya Mandala Surabaya, Jl. Kalijudan No. 37, East Java, Surabaya, 60114, Indonesia; School of Food Safety, Taipei Medical University, 250 Wu-Hsing Street, Taipei, 11031, Taiwan; Ph.D. Program in Drug Discovery and Development Industry, College of Pharmacy, Taipei Medical University, 250 Wu-Hsing Street, Taipei, 11031, Taiwan; Research Center of Biomedical Device, Taipei Medical University, 250 Wu-Hsing Street, Taipei, 11031, Taiwan; Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, National Chung Hsing University, South Dist, Taichung City, 402202, Taiwan; Department of Food Science, National Ilan University, Shennong Road, Yilan City, 260007, Taiwan; Department of Medical Research, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung City, 404333, Taiwan; School of Energy and Environment, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Centre for Functional Photonics (CFP), City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong; Shenzhen Research Institute of City University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, 518057, China; School of Engineering, University of San Carlos - Talamban Campus, Gov. M. Cuenco, Cebu City, 6000, Philippines; Center for Sustainable Resource Science, RIKEN, Yokohama, 230-0045, Japan