Abstract Superhydrophobic surface designed by less-expensive and environmentally friendly route for oil/water separation has drawn increasing interest across the scientific community. However, the practical applications of superhydrophobic surface are still hampered by lengthy preparation procedure and high-cost manufacture. In this work, octadecyl trimethoxysilane modified halloysite nanotubes (ODTMS-HNTs) were applied to prepare a superhydrophobic cotton fabric through a facile and economic dipping-drying process for oil/water separation. The addition of ODTMS-HNTs on cotton fibers not only decreases surface energy and increases roughness simultaneously, but also resulting in a superhydrophobic/superoleophilic surface. The separation efficiency can be as high as 99.99 %, and showing good ability in at least 10 separation cycles. The prepared cotton fabric can absorb oil over 12.5 times of its own weight, showing ultra-high absorptive capacity. In addition, the prefabricated cotton fabric could be applied in extremely harsh circumstances (pH from 2 to 14). Overall, the superhydrophobic/superoleophilic cotton fabric made by such versatile technique is promising in oil/water separation.

中文翻译：

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埃洛石纳米管功能化棉织物用于油水分离

摘要 通过成本较低且环境友好的油/水分离路线设计的超疏水表面引起了科学界越来越多的兴趣。然而，超疏水表面的实际应用仍然受到冗长的制备过程和高成本的阻碍。在这项工作中，十八烷基三甲氧基硅烷改性埃洛石纳米管（ODTMS-HNTs）通过一种简便经济的浸渍干燥工艺用于油/水分离，制备了超疏水棉织物。在棉纤维上添加 ODTMS-HNTs 不仅会降低表面能并同时增加粗糙度，而且还会产生超疏水/超亲油表面。分离效率可高达99.99%，并在至少10次分离循环中表现出良好的能力。制备的棉织物吸油量可达自身重量的12.5倍以上，具有超高的吸油能力。此外，预制棉织物可应用于极端恶劣的环境（pH 值从 2 到 14）。总体而言，由这种通用技术制成的超疏水/超亲油棉织物在油/水分离方面很有前景。