Abstract
New poly(ionic liquid)s, PILs, based on quaternized ethoxylate octadecylamine acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonate-co-acrylic acid (AMPS/AA) copolymers were synthesized using radical polymerization. New hypothesis for demulsification of petroleum crude oil:water emulsions was elucidated from zeta potential measurements of water crude oil emulsions in the presence and absence of the prepared PILs. The prepared PILs based on AMPS/AA copolymer showed greater demulsification and dispersion efficiencies for petroleum emulsion and oil spill, respectively. The data were confirmed by optical microscope and average particle size distribution for crude oil emulsions.
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•New amphiphilic poly(ionic liquid)s•PILs act as environmentally friendly oil spill dispersant for crude oil.•PILs achieved good demulsification efficiency for petroleum crude oil.