High performance graphene-based foam fabricated by a facile approach for oil absorption

Abstract

Superhydrophobicity and high elasticity are the two key properties of oil-absorption porous materials. The hydrophobic graphene/carbon black coating on the skeleton of a melamine sponge facilitated the surface to form the micro/nanoscale roughness. The resulting sponge thus was superhydrophobic. Moreover, it inherited the extremely high elasticity of raw melamine sponge, which showed no plastic deformation even after 1000 compression/relaxing cycles. To our knowledge, this was the first superhydrophobic graphene-based porous monolith with such a high elasticity. Its absorbed oils could be recycled by simple squeezing and it was also regenerated by squeezing because of the high elasticity. In addition, it showed a high absorption capacity for common oil contaminations and its fabrication was facile. Therefore, it is really an excellent absorbent for the practical absorption of oil contaminations from water.