Energy & Fuels, Vol.27, No.5, 2458-2464, 2013
Electrospun Superhydrophobic Poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) Fibrous Membranes for the Separation of Dispersed Water from Ultralow Sulfur Diesel
One of the major causes of diesel engine maintenance problems is water contamination in fuels. This paper discusses fabrication, characterization, and testing of non-woven glass fiber mats augmented with an electrospun layer of poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP) fibers for the separation of secondary water dispersions from ultralow sulfur diesel. The PVDF-HFP fibers had an average fiber diameter of 334 nm. All PVDF-HFP layers had water contact angles greater than 150 degrees with relatively low hysteresis values, making them superhydrophobic. Water separation experiments showed that glass fiber media augmented with electrospun PVDF-HFP fiber mats significantly improved water separation, with water removal efficiencies reaching 99%, as compared to glass fiber media without the PVDF-HFP layer.