Claims
- 1. In a method for removing organic liquids from aqueous solutions, the improvement comprising: utilizing a porous material having small pores and large surface area, and which is hydrophobic.
- 2. The improvement of claim 1, additionally including forming the porous material in a granular form.
- 3. The improvement of claim 1, wherein separation of the organic liquids that mix with the aqueous solution is carried out by evaporating across a liquid/solid boundary formed at the surfaces of the hydrophobic porous material.
- 4. The improvement of claim 1, wherein separation of organic liquids that are immiscible with the aqueous solution is carried out by wetting the surfaces of the hydrophobic porous material and are drawn within the porous material by capillary action.
- 5. The improvement of claim 1, wherein said porous material is an aerogel.
- 6. The improvement of claim 5, wherein said aerogel is a silica aerogel.
- 7. The improvement of claim 5, wherein said aerogel is composed of one of the group of granular form and powder form.
- 8. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the porous material is an hydrophobic aerogel formed by using fluorine containing molecules in a sol-gel process.
- 9. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the porous material is a hydrophobic aerogel formed by using fluorine containing molecules and treating a dried aerogel using the vapor of the flourine containing molecules.
- 10. A method for removing organic liquids from aqueous solutions and mixtures using a hydrophobic aerogel whereby liquid water does not readily wet its surface, wherein organics that mix with and are more volatile than water are separated from the aqueous solution by preferentially evaporating across the liquid/solid boundary formed by surfaces of the hydrophobic aerogel, and wherein organic solvents that are immesicible with water, preferentially wet the surfaces of the hydrophobic aerogel and are drawn within the aerogel by capillary action.
- 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the hydrophobic aerogel is formed from a silica aerogel or semi-solid silica gel.
- 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the silica aerogel is made hydrophobic by using fluorine containing molecules in formulating the aerogel or treating a dried aerogel using the vapor of fluorine containing molecules.
- 13. The improvement of claim 1, wherein the aerogel is composed of methyl function groups.
- 14. The improvement of claim 1, additionally including forming the porous material in a semi-solid gel form.
- 15. The improvement of claim 1, additionally including forming the porous material as a membrane for insertion between two fluids.
Government Interests
[0001] The United States Government has rights in this invention pursuant to Contract No. W-7405-ENG-48 between the United States Department of Energy and the University of California for the operation of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.