The use of modified forms of peat as an oil coalescer

Abstract

Dried Irish peat and sulfuric acid‐treated Michigan peat 08–35 u.s. mesh) are shown to be capable of effectively removing ∼90% of the oil in ∼250 ppm oil‐in‐water emulsions from a flow system at 25 ml/min. The coalescence capability of the peat samples in both distilled and synthetic sea water is comparable to that of XAD‐2 polystyrene beads. Cartridges of these granular materials could be alternatives to the fibrous material in bilge water filters for shipboard use. They would be less susceptible to plugging by suspended solids and the peat offers a further advantage of being very inexpensive due to its availability.

Keywords:

• Peat
• XAD‐2
• Oil Coalescer

Notes

Present Address: Department of Chemistry, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602.