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This work presents an experimental study focusing on the preparation and characterization of modified green clay with quaternary ammonium salts alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride (ADMBAC) and distearyl dimethyl ammonium chloride (DSDMAC) intended to be used as adsorbent in the process of removing oil emulsion in an oil–water system using finite bath. X-ray diffraction (XRD), infrared spectroscopy (IR) and expansion test (adsorption capacity and Foster swelling) measurements were performed in order to evaluate the performance of the ion exchange reactions and the degree of affinity with oil products. There was an increase in the XRD basal spacing of the modified clays (1.96 nm and 2.25 nm for DSDMAC and ADMBAC salts, respectively) in comparison to the observed value (1.56 nm) for the unmodified clay. The IR results revealed that salts were successfully incorporated to clay structure. Based on the expansion tests the organoclays presented the best efficiency of separation, independent on the kind of solvent used in comparison with the unmodified clay performance. The modified clays exhibit a very high capacity of adsorption. The predictions of multiple linear regression models determined based on the factorial design of experiments are excellent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work presents experimental results on the synthesis of soybean oil-based polymers through emulsion polymerization process. It was shown that polymeric materials can be successfully synthesized with high monomers conversion close to 100% and very high stability, displaying relatively high shelf-life time. Polymeric nanoparticles showing narrow particle size distribution, with average diameter around 80 nm (PdI = 0.213), determined via dynamic light scattering measurements were obtained. It was also observed by calorimetric analysis, that the final polymeric material presents two exothermic transitions and two glass transition temperatures. This complex thermal behavior probably takes place due to the nature of the monomeric mixture (AFFAM—acrylated linolenic, linoleic, and oleic acids in combination with methyl methacrylate), indicating that the final polymer presents a complex macromolecular arrangement. The glass transition temperature of the polymer lattices was reduced because of the AFFAM incorporation into the growing polymer chains, and additionally the thermal stability was improved. Regarding the average molar masses, it was observed that AFFAM comonomer plays an important role, leading to a decreasing in the mass-average molar mass when the AFFAM concentration is increased in the reaction medium. Depending on the AFFAM amount, the mass-average molar masses were found within the range from 70,000 g mol −1 to 890,000 g mol −1 with molar-mass dispersity lying in the interval from 1.7 to 2.4. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electrostatic dehydration of crude-oil emulsionswere investigatedusing pilot-plant and industrial data. The experimental data obtainedwith seven different crudes over a wide range of viscosities in apilot plant showed that the electric field and the residence timewere the most important operating variables. Various crude-oil propertiesinfluenced the emulsion stability, including the total acid numberand the resin, asphaltene, and metal contents, but their effects werestatistically correlated with the crude-oil viscosity and density.Using pilot-plant data, a power-law model relating the water contentin the treated oil to the dehydration operating conditions and thecrude-oil viscosity and density was developed to aid in the designand evaluation of industrial units. The model was tested against industrialdata and found to be able to predict very well the performance ofthe industrial units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]