Degradation of methylene blue using pillared TiO2on de-oiled spent bleaching clay

AbstractAn effective method that combines solvent extraction with ultrasonic irradiation was developed to recycle spent bleaching clay (SBC) from modern oil refinery plants. The principle of ‘waste to treasure’ was used to achieve the regenerated SBC. Various characterization techniques were applied to analyse and compare regenerated SBC and commercial bleaching clay (CBC). The structure of the regenerated SBC did not show any obvious change compared with that of CBC, but the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller-specific surface area (SBET) and pore-volume values of the regenerated SBC increased. At the same time, the parameters of the regenerated SBC reached national standards. In addition, the samples were used as low-cost adsorbents for the adsorption of methylene blue (MB) from water. The regenerated SBC had greater adsorption efficiency and cycle performance for MB than CBC. Hence, the SBC may be treated by ultrasonic radiation combined with extraction, and the regenerated SBC has better properties than CBC. This work opens up a new approach to the regeneration and utilization of SBC and raises the potential of ultrasonic irradiation as an environmentally friendly method to be applied to various regeneration systems.

Download Full-text

Co-valorization of agro-industry by-products: effect of citrus oil on the quality of soap derived from palm fatty acid distillate and spent bleaching clay

Letters in Applied NanoBioScience ◽

10.33263/lianbs83.571575 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 8 (3) ◽

pp. 571-575

Author(s):

Teerasak Punvichai ◽

Daniel Pioch

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acid ◽

Oil Refining ◽

Bleaching Clay ◽

Microbial Count ◽

Basic Solution ◽

Soap Content ◽

Palm Fatty Acid Distillate ◽

Spent Bleaching Clay ◽

By Products ◽

Fatty Acid Distillate

This study deals with the co-valorization of spent bleaching clay (SBC) and palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD) –by-products of palm oil refining plants- through soap manufacture. Obtained SBC and PFAD samples show differing acidity and saponification values depending on fatty acids and acylglycerols content. Soaps are prepared using the stoichiometric amount of NaOH, under the varying proportion of water introduced through the basic solution. The mixing SBC and PFAD (ratio 1:3), the reaction completion (92.5%) is surprisingly higher than expected, indicating a synergistic effect on the course of the saponification reaction. The water is also a critical parameter, 30% w/w of added water allowing the highest yield. When testing for cleaning efficiency the products having the highest soap content, those from individual by-products give a low microbial count reduction after hand-washing (30-37%). But a much better score (74%) is obtained when using SBC:PFAD soap mixtures. This improvement could be due to abrasive and absorption effects of the clay, combined with the high soap content. The acceptability through a panel test is good for all soaps when formulated with citrus oil. The most active product corresponds to a SBC:PFAD ratio close to the production one in refining plants. Therefore these results provide an easy way for co-valorising these by-products, after further optimizing the saponification reaction in this complex triphasic medium (aqueous solution, oil, clay).

Download Full-text