Oil/water separation through dual-channeled superhydrophobic/underwater superoleophobic meshes toward continuous processes

A highly efficient continuous oil/water separation process is proposed where both superhydrophobic/superoleophilic oil-removing and superhydrophilic/underwater superoleophobic water-removing stainless steel meshes are installed at the bottom of the same container to construct a dual-channeled separator, in which agitation is applied to avoid the stratification of oil/water mixtures. Continuous oil/water separation is easily realized by this dual-channeled separator. Stainless steel meshes above 300-mesh afford separation efficiency higher than 99.5% for oils lighter than water such as gasoline, hexane, and heptane and oils heavier than water like carbon tetrachloride in a wide range of ratio of oil to water.