Could Magnet Help the Ocean?

By Leslie Romero

Overall, ocean oil spills are difficult to clean-up, and not to mention, it takes a long time for oceans to recover from such event. Some locations to this day have yet not recovered from past oil spills. In turn, marine life is greatly affected causing over 1,000 animal deaths. Unfortunately, such tragedy happens more often than one would think. Therefore, researchers are currently looking into different methods to clean ocean oil spills, particularly the production of magnetic polymer composites. This investigation is being conducted by preparing magnetic polymer beads and sheets (Gomez de Souza et al., 2010).  These beads and/or sheets are then added to oil suspended on water, turning it into a magnetic fluid called Ferrofluid. This has been tested by pouring 90 mL of water into a beaker, spilling 4 g of oil on the surface of the water, and then adding the magnetic composite (Gomez de Souza et al., 2010). To test if the oil can be remove, an electromagnet is used; which in the experiment conducted by Gomez de Souza at al. showed a high capability for the oil to be removed through magnetic force. In order for this work, the chemical attraction between the magnetic composite and the oil must be very high (Gomez Souza et al., 2010). Although this may change the prospective of the world, it is not yet flawless. The addition of these polymer beads into the ocean may as well affect marine life. Therefore, the removal of this polymer material must be effortless. For this to occur, polymer material must have low densities to allow for floating on the water surface, as well as a strong magnetic force for removal by magnets.  

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References 

Gomes de Souza, F., Marins, J. A., Rodrigues, C. H. M. and Pinto, J. C. (2010), A Magnetic Composite for Cleaning of Oil Spills on Water. Macromol. Mater. Eng., 295: 942–948. doi:10.1002/mame.201000090