Adriane Ludwick

Usefulness of raw bagasse for oil absorption: A comparison of raw and acylated bagasse and their components

Raw bagasse or sugar cane cellulosic residues were modified using acylation grafting with fatty acid. The capability of the grafted bagasse to absorb oil from aqueous solution was studied and compared with the raw bagasse. It was found that the grafted material was significantly more hydrophobic than the raw bagasse. This grafted bagasse had little affinity for water and good affinity for oil. It was also found that bleaching of raw bagasse did not enhance its oil absorptivity. The grafted raw bagasse would be most suitable for applications where oil is to be removed from an aqueous environment. For oil absorbing applications in the absence of water, the raw bagasse was an excellent material.

Developing and Testing of a New Anticorrosive Coating Containing Algae as a Natural Inhibitor for Preventing Marine Corrosion of Steel

Abstract Green algae were tested as a natural additive for a paint formulation based on vinyl chloride copolymer (VYHH) to evaluate its efficiency for protection of steel against corrosion in seawater using spectrophotometry, alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) electrochemical measurements, visual inspection, and surface analysis. Both suspended and extracted forms of algae were used to achieve optimum performance of the algae-contained coatings. Poorest performance was obtained when algae was added in its suspended form, whereas the extracted form exhibited better performance based on impedance measurements. The data demonstrated that highest protection was obtained at the algae threshold concentration of ∼1.4 wt%. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive x-ray (EDX) analysis together with visual inspection of coated specimens exposed to the marine environment gave very good support to the electrochemical data.

Solvent Effect on the Protection Efficiency of Vinyl Resin Varnish for Preventing the Corrosion of Steel Using Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy

Abstract Varnishes formulated from vinyl chloride copolymer resin (VYHH) and different solvent combinations (methyl isobutyl ketone [MIBK], benzene, meta-xylene, and toluene) were evaluated using e...