OBTAINING A HYDROPHOBIC SORPTION MATERIAL FROM CLAY WASTE FROM THE PURIFICATION OF USED MOTOR OILS FOR THE EXTRACTION OF PETROLEUM PRODUCTS FROM WATER-OIL EMULSIONS

Environmental pollution and the growing volume of industrial and household waste remain a serious global problem. Large-scale waste includes soils and filter materials contaminated with petroleum products and oils. Significant volumes are also generated during the regeneration of lubricating oils: 80–140 kg of spent mineral sorbent is produced for every ton of purified oil. Due to the complexity and high cost of regenerating such materials, the need to find alternative methods for their processing is increasing. This paper proposes using clay waste, used in the regeneration of machine oils, as a raw material for producing sorption material. It was found that heating the spent waste, saturated with petroleum products, to 400 °C leads to a significant change in the material structure and the formation of an organomineral sorbent. Derivatographic analysis revealed the sequential removal of moisture, decomposition of organic components, and destruction of hydrocarbons. Energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the formation of a carbon layer on the particle surface, consistent with data on the modification of similar waste. The resulting material was found to exhibit hydrophobic properties and high sorption capacity: total oil absorption capacity for motor oil is 1.95 g/g, and oil absorption capacity in an aqueous emulsion is 205 mg/g.