(526e) A Comparison of the Effectiveness of Solid and Solubilized Dioctyl Sodium Sulfosuccinate On Oil Dispersion Using a Baffled Flask Test

                                        2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Annual Meeting,

San Francisco, CA

November 3-8, 2013

A Comparison of the Effectiveness of Solid and Solubilized Dioctyl Sodium Sulfosuccinate on Oil Dispersion Using a Baffled Flask Test

Emmanuel Nyankson, Courtney A. Ober, Matthew J. DeCuir, and Ram B. Gupta

Department of Chemical Engineering, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849

            The application of chemical dispersants is one of the few feasible response measures for minimizing the impact of a large oil spill at sea. Effective use of dispersants can accelerate oil biodegradation by naturally occurring microorganisms and prevent the oil spill from coming ashore and damaging sensitive coastal ecosystems. However, indiscriminate application of dispersant to subsea and surface oil spills results in a significant amount of dispersant not coming into contact with the oil. The aqueous solubility and miscibility of oil spill dispersants and inevitable sea currents cause dispersant to be washed away and wasted. To compensate for inefficiency, large amounts of dispersants are used resulting in high costs and a large environmental load. For example, an estimated 2.2 million gallons of dispersant were applied to the Gulf of Mexico during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010. To increase dispersant efficiency, the use of solid water-insoluble polymer particles which contain the active ingredient in chemical dispersants, a surfactant, are being studied for their potential in oil dispersion. In such a formulation the surfactant is only released when in contact with oil, at which time the polymer matrix dissolves in the oil. Furthermore, the ability of particulates to orient at the oil-water interface may allow for continuous release of surfactant directly where it is needed. In this study, the effectiveness of oil dispersion using the surfactant dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate (DOSS) was compared by delivering the surfactant from polymer particles and liquid solvents using the EPA’s baffled flask procedure. The polymer particles were prepared by ultrasonically spray drying polystyrene, polydimethylsulfoxide, and DOSS from a dichloromethane solution varying the polymer to surfactant ratios. The amount of encapsulated DOSS was determined by suspending the particles in water and measuring the amount of DOSS released using a methylene blue complexation procedure. Liquid delivery of DOSS was accomplished by dissolving the surfactant in either dichloromethane, water, or propylene glycol. The results of this study show the potential of surfactant-polymer particles to replace liquid dispersants in oil spill remediation.

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