Abstract
The process of forming an emulsion is an energy-consuming process. The smaller the internal phase droplets we want to produce and the closer the droplets are in size to each other (monodisperse), the more energy we need to put into the system. Generating energy carries a high economic cost, as well as a high environmental footprint. Considering the fact that dispersive systems are widely used in various fields of life, it is necessary to search for other, less-energy-intensive methods that will allow the creation of dispersive systems with adequate performance and minimal energy input. Therefore, an alternative way to obtain emulsions characterized by small droplet sizes was proposed by using an imbibition process in porous materials. By applying this technique, it was possible to obtain average droplet sizes at least half the size of the base emulsion while reducing the polydispersity by about 40%. Oil-in-water emulsions in which vegetable oil or kerosene is the oily phase were tested. The studies were carried out at three different volume concentrations of the emulsions. Detailed analyses of diameter distributions and emulsion concentrations are presented. In addition, the advantages and limitations of the method are presented and the potential for its application is indicated.
Highlights
To produce emulsions from two immiscible liquids, it is necessary to disperse one phase into the other
Based on the results presented in this work, the emulsions obtained by the imbibition method had the smallest average diameters oil droplets of theoforder of several and imbibition method had the smallestof average diameters oil droplets of micrometers the order of sevthe largest average diameters of 10–15%
A fibrous material was used as the porous structure
Summary
To produce emulsions from two immiscible liquids, it is necessary to disperse one phase into the other. A certain droplet size distribution will be achieved, and the average droplet size will depend on the power input: the higher the power input, the smaller the average droplet size [16] This means that obtaining small emulsion droplet sizes requires very high energy expenditures. It becomes important to obtain emulsions characterized by small droplet sizes by using alternative methods, where such high energy inputs are not required. Imbibition is a fundamental phenomenon in the scientific and industrial community due to its wide application in numerous technological processes and frequent occurrence in nature This knowledge is important to recover oil from fractured reservoirs [20,21] and to remove its splits on the water and soil surface by applying synthetic or natural sorbents [22,23].
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