ILIGAN CITY: A bio-based polyurethane foam has been successfully tested on its oil absorption in the oil spill in Mindoro and Mindanao State University Iligan Institute of Technology team leader (MSU-IIT) said the technology would be refined. more to absorb the oil that has dried a little in the sea.
Polyurethane foam labeled “CocoFlexSorb” was successful in absorbing oil spilled into the sea by the MT Princess Empress when it sank in March this year, said Hernando P. Bacosa, a professor of Environmental Sciences of the Faculty of Sciences and Mathematics of the MSU-IIT.
Bacosa said the technology uses coconut oil tweaked to absorb other oils, but was rushed to respond to the oil spill. While it showed the ability to absorb crude oil, he said much of the spilled oil had degraded or dried out and had to be removed manually.
“We would investigate again how this technology would be able to absorb the larger size weathered oil,” Bacosa said.
According to the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the CocoFlexSorb was one of three new innovations in foam products that were developed from the “DOST-Niche Centers in the Regions for R&D” or “Nicer “, from the Sustainable Polymers Center at MMSU-IIT.
Also called “superoleophilic foams,” the technology “has demonstrated potential to absorb numerous types of oil.”
“The material has been shown to have a high affinity and absorption capacity in bunker oil, fresh and used motor oil, kerosene and vegetable oils,” the DOST said. “It is hydrophobic in both fresh and salt water and has superior reusability as its oil absorption capacity does not diminish with use.”
The research team almost had to give up further research on this particular foam product after several tests over the past 18 months consistently showed coconut oil to absorb water, apart from other oils, thus filling the buckets that were supposed to store any others. oils that had to be absorbed.
“This technology was accelerated because of the oil spill, and therefore research was accelerated,” Bacosa added.
The technology would only require a small bucket size to fit the storage and its other appliances of less than one cubic meter, when tested. In commercial use, there would be several of this package, which would be placed next to the oil spill boom. Bacosa said the technology is “still in its technological stage and not yet commercialized.”
This foam technology is different from those available in the market: it has a superior oil absorption capacity and can absorb different types of light oil, vegetable oil, kerosene, motor oil and bunker oil.
The “superoleophilic foams,” from foams labeled CocoFlexSorb, were unveiled to the public last week during the inauguration of three DOST-funded labs inside MSU-IIT. These are: the Institute for Research in Engineering and Innovative Technology (RIEIT); and, the two research centers below it, the Nicer-Center for Sustainable Polymers (CSP) and the Center for Energy Research and Technology (CERT).
Other foams include rigid insulation foam panels, designed specifically for the building and construction industry, aimed at the segment that prioritizes sustainable and eco-friendly materials and the first of its kind to use fully derived polyol of coconut oil, without any petroleum. Another is “viscoelastic foam,” a bio-based alternative to commercially available “memory” foams, which has a higher density than conventional foams and has the signature characteristic of memory foams: slow recovery.
Bacosa is one of the Filipino scientists who responded to the government’s call to return to the country under the “Balik Scientist” program. He graduated from MSU’s main campus in Marawi City and did his master’s and doctorate in environmental science in Japan. He went to the US to teach Marine Science at the University of Texas.
