Polyanilines as new sorbents for hydrocarbons removal from aqueous solutions

Water remediation from hydrocarbons is crucial to reduce health risks. Numerous costly and, sometimes, sophisticated methods were proposed over the years. Herein, an innovative green procedure for porous polyanilines preparation is reported. Polyaniline (PANI) was synthesized by three different approaches ranging from traditional to more eco-friendly ones. Thermal, optical and morphological features of the resulting materials were investigated along with their surface properties. Finally, PANIs were tested as sorbents for hydrocarbons removal from waterbodies. Although an overall fast and high sorption efficiency is always observed, the effective hydrocarbons abatement performed by 'green' PANIs is particularly welcome in the context of environmental protection. Moreover, the sorption efficiency retention after five-run recycling tests suggests potential applications in wastewater remediation.