Chapter 2

Coconut Coir:

The seed or fruit of the coconut palm is referred to as a coconut (Cocos

nucifera). Cocos is a monotypic genus in the Arecaceae family. The term "nut" is a

misnomer as this fruit is botanically classified as a drupe. Since these three creases

(eyes) on the hairy nut resemble the head and face of a monkey, early Spanish

explorers called it ‘cocos' or ‘monkey face;' ‘nucifera' means ‘nut bearing.' The spelling

‘cocoanut' is a slang term for the word coconut (Pearsall, 1999). Coconut palms grow in

a band around the world between 25° North and 25° South of the equator. Southeast

Asia, Indonesia, India, Australia, the Pacific Islands, South America, Africa, the

Caribbean, and the southern extremes of North America are all home to the palm.

Coconut palms thrive in free-draining aerated soil, which is commonly found on sandy

beaches, as well as a supply of fresh groundwater, a humid atmosphere, and

temperatures ranging from 27°C to 30°C. (Ahuja, 2014)

Each year, a coconut tree can grow 50 up to 100 pieces of coconut fruit.

Coconut fruits float easily and have been widely spread in the topics by both ocean

currents and humans. Coir, a salt- resistant fiber used to produce materials, is made

from a dry husk. A coir fiber is removed from an endorcap layer of the coconut fruit.

After being removed and cleaned the collected coir are usually appears as golden or

brown reddish color. Its thread are usually 0.01 to 0.04 inches in diameter. Each husk of

coconut contains 20 to 30 % fibers of different lengths. Coir fibers derived from coconut

husks are dense and rough, with some distinct advantages such as increase stiffness

and wear resistance. They have greater acoustic tolerance, non-toxicity, moth
resistance, bacterial and fungal degradation resistance and they are not susceptible to

combustible properties (Hasan, 2021).

Coir refers to the fibrous outer shell of a Coconut. It is a coarse fiber extracted

from its husk(Coir fiber, n.d.). The structure of the individual fiber cells is narrow and

hollow, with thick walls made of cellulose. Each cell is approximately 1 mm long and 10-

20 μm in diameter. The unripe fibers of Coconut have a length that varies from 15 to 35

cm and a diameter from 50 to 300 μm. When immature, they are pale. But it hardens

and yellows, as a layer of lignin is distributed on their walls (Panyakaew&Fotios, 2011).

There are two types of Coir: mature brown and white fibers. Brown fibers consist of

more lignin with less cellulose than fibers such as flax and cotton. Hence, these are

stronger yet less flexible. While white fiber is finer and smoother, but also weak. One

quality of coir fiber is waterproof. It is the only natural fiber that is resistant to saltwater

damage (Coir fiber, n.d.).

There are two (2) types of coconut coir based on its color. Brown fiber, which are

strong and has a high abrasion resistance, is obtained from matured coconut whereas

white fiber, which is usually smoother and finer but weaker is obtained from younger

coconut.Brown fibers are mostly used in the field of engineering (Arya, 2018). The

coconut fiber has a high content of lignin and a lower content of cellulose and

hemicellulose, with its high microfibrillar angle, which offers valuable properties such as

resilience, strength, and resistance to weathering. Coconut coir is usually used for the

production of ropes, mats, brushes in various industries (Yashas, et.al, 2019).

coconut-fibre mattress, which yields the coarse coir fibre. The husk contains 30% fibre

and 70% pith. Both of these have high lignin and phenolic content. Coconut fiber is very

elastic, durable, and resistant to rotting because of its high lignin content (Yan, 2016).

The coir has various uses. Brown coir is utilized in making brushes, doormats,

mattresses and sacking. It can also be made into twines. Pads of curled brown coir fiber

are molded and cut to fill the mattresses. It can be used to control erosion on river

banks and hillsides. In Europe, most of the brown coir pads are sprayed with rubber

latex that binds the fibers together for upholstery padding in automobile industry. The

material can also be utilized for packaging and insulation. While, majority of white coir

fiber is manufactured for rope production. Mats of woven coir fiber are made from

smooth grades of bristle and white fiber with the utilization of hand or mechanical looms.

As coir is free from bacterial and fungal spores, it is recommended as a substitute for

milled peat moss (Coir fiber, n.d.).

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization( FAO), the

country of India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, and Philippines are the top five list of

countries in the world for processing coconut fiber. More than 90% of the world's

coconut fiber is manufactured in these countries. Ropes, mattresses, brushes, brooms

are all made of coconut fiber( Bui et al., 2020).

Coconut fibers can float on the water's surface for an extended period of time,

collecting enough oil(Abel et al., 2020). The amount of lignin present in its fibers is

important to its ability in adsorbing organic substances from aqueous solutions

(Ifelebuegu& Momoh, 2015). It has been reported that the sorption capacity of coconut

coir/coir is greater than that of commercial synthetic organic material derived from

propylene [10]. Similarly, kapok, rice coir, banana trunk fiber, acetylation of raw cotton,

and cotton grass fiber have all been shown to be effective oil sorbents (Abel et al.,

2020).

This unwanted agricultural waste is transformed into a valuable adsorbent.

Utilizing these agricultural byproducts could provide a source of adsorbents, which

could help to solve a portion of the wastewater treatment problem (Abel et al., 2020).

Coconut coir commonly obtained as an agricultural waste from processing

coconut shells was found having sorbent properties. It contains 38% cellulose, 28%

hemicellulose and 32.8% lignin. Functional groups can also be discovered such as -OH

and fiber carbonaceous CxOH that is present on its surface and can facilitate the uptake

of positively charged metal ions from an aqueous solution. Its lignin, which is one of its

content, plays a key role in having a great capacity to adsorb organic substances from

an aqueous solution (Ifelebuegu and Momoh, 2015).Among the many organic and

agricultural wastes, Coconut coir is one of the most sustainable absorbent products

available. When observed in its microscopic level, Coconut coir has hollow channel

structures, which allows hydrocarbon spills such as gasoline and oil to be trapped
inside. Its fibers are known to be very coarse and stiff, and is also resistant to rot in

saltwater, which implies its potential to hold onto the adsorbed spills for a long period of

time (SpillFix, N.D.).

Coconut coir is one form of lignocellulose material, a renewable raw material that

is widely obtained in the form of an agricultural waste or residue. It has a high

adsorption capacity, which also has been a current interest among researchers to

further study its oil sorption capacity. Since lignocellulose is present in the coconut coir,

it also shows adsorption capacity potential (Yusof, et al., 2015).

The larger the surface area of material the more fluid it will absorb. The result

obtained also indicated that coconut husk is the best oil absorber. This is because

coconut husk is fibrous in nature. The result also shows that the absorbents absorbed

only a little quantity of water as expected. Since coconut husk worked well in absorbing

the engine oil from the oil-water mixture, it can be used for absorbing crude oil. Coconut

husk is therefore recommendable for use as an absorbent in a device for the cleanup of

office oil spill. (E.O. Henry 2014)

Coir fibre was functionalized to improve its hydrophobicity and oil sorption

capability after it was collected as a waste from coconut fruit. FT-IR, TGA, and SEM

were used to classify the sample, which verified the grafting of butyl acrylate monomer

onto the coir fibres. The effects of time, temperature, and monomer concentration on

coir fibre grafting and oil absorption potential were also studied.The transformed coir

fiber absorbed a significant amount of crude oil, and studies show that a quick
squeezing was necessary to extract the majority of the oil sorbed by the fibres, allowing

the sorbents to be reused for oil spill clean-up several times (Teli 2015).

Oil Sorbent Boom

In aspects of adsorption or absorption, there is what we call materials like

sorbent. It is a material, natural or synthetic, that plays a vital role in oil spill cleanup and

recovery. It is used in cleaning traces of oil spills on land or water areas, containment

means, and as a recovery means in minimal spills. These are very common in

industries and in the coastlines (Science Direct, 2011). Sorbents comes in a variety of

material, sizes and forms depending on its use and on the environment. There are

pads, rolls, booms, blankets or pillows.

Oil sorbent boom or also known as oil adsorbent boom, is a type of sorbent that

is commonly used as an oil spill response on the coastlines. It is a floating material,

acting as a physical barrier or containment which eases or prevents the spread of oil on

water. Its physical appearance is a long sausage-like shape that is made out of a

material that adsorbs or absorbs oil. It can contain organic or synthetic material (NOAA,

2019). The structure of an oil sorbent boom such as the size and length are important

considerations. Since its main purpose is to contain the oil spill and adsorb oil traces in

the ocean and coastlines, these considerations are important to achieve success on the

water environment. The ideal size of an oil boom is largely related to the state of the sea

on which it will be used. The characteristics that needs to be considered on the

structure of oil booms are tensile strength, ease and speed of deployment, reliability,

weight, and cost. To avoid the short-spanned damage of the boom, it is essential for it
to be strong and durable to tolerate various situations when placed in the ocean or

coastlines (ITOPF, 2011).

Oil booms are also known as containment boom. It is a floating and physical

barrier that isdesigned for oil spills (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[NOAA], n.d.; ABASCO, n.d.). It can be made out of plastic, metal, or other materials

that slows down oil spreading by containment. It can be deployed by skilled teams using

mooring systems, like anchors and land lines. Booms are commonly placed across a

narrow entrance to the ocean or around a sensitive location, to prevent the oil from

entering a marshland or any susceptible habitat, such as shellfish beds or beaches. It

also minimizes pollution on rivers, shorelines, and oceans during oil collection in thick

surface layers for easy recovery (ABASCO, n.d.).

Sorbents have been widely used to clean up after crude oil spills, particularly in

marine environments. Sorbents are frequently applied directly to the surface of the oil as

loose material or deployed as booms. Booms are long rolls of buoyant, adsorbent

materials that are wrapped around a vessel or oil patch to prevent further oil spread

while also adsorbing the contained oil. Oils are primarily adsorbed rather than absorbed

by booms because the liquids adhere to the surface of the materials and are not

chemically integrated within them. The hydrophobic and oleophilic properties of the

material are the primary considerations for sorbent effectiveness. Secondary criteria

that can be used to assess their efficiency include the amount of oil adsorbed per unit

weight of sorbent, the retention of the adsorbed oil, and the buoyancy of boom materials

(Adebajo et al., 2003). When subjected to changing environmental conditions such as

varying levels of effectiveness (Castro et al., 2010).

Sorbent booms are a form of first-line defense equipment that is used to absorb

and mitigate the effects of crude oil spills.Human hair waste booms were compared to

other natural sorbents such as cotton by-products, recycled cellulose, and synthetic

polypropylene booms in order to see how good they were at adsorbing petroleum crude

oil emissions, staying buoyant, and adsorbing seawater. (Pagnucco R. 2018).

Booms can help control and extend of oil slicks by physically absorbing this by

creating a barrier around everything, and afterwards the oil can be picked up by

skimmers (mechanical devices), but it can be costly spillage due to the high cost of

equipment and labor, and it is inadequate for oil on turbulent seas or rivers. These

disperse oil from the sea surface by lowering interfacial tension at the oil/water interface

and accelerating natural biodegradation. (Saleem,. et al)

Large oil spill in an aquatic environment resulted a massive damage to the

mariner's life habitat, human health, and economy. It is important to clean up

immediately to avoid further problems. A mechanical sorbent recovery is one of the

most efficient ways to address the problem. The oil sorbent materials are responsible

for the uptake of oil from water. It was divided into three categories: Inorganic, natural

products, Organic synthetic products of sorbent(Ifelebuegu et al., 2015). In addition,

they can be used to recover oil by absorption, adsortion or both mechanisms. Another

advantage of using a sorbent is its ease of use, rapid oil uptake, and ability to capture

and hold oil for later retrieval.(Parab et al., 2010).

weed floss straw, hay, saw dust, corncobs, feathers, coconut coir and other carbon-

based items are some examples of Natural organic sorbents. It is an intriguing

substance because of its ability to remove a high percentage of oil spilled in water while

causing minimal environmental risk (Almajed et al., 2012). In addition, Because of its

lower density, they can float on water. And organic sorbents are appealing to use

because of its lower price, quality and low toxicity in aquatic ecosystem. However,

Inorganic sorbents contains zeolite, silica, perlite, graphite, vermiculite glass, sand, wool

and volcanic ash. And synthetic sorbents contains plastics and polymers.(She ert

al.,2010). They have higher density than the organic sorbents. And they are responsible

for higher sorption capacity. Synthetic sorbents are man-made materials most likely

polymers and plastics. And because of its high potential in oil sorption and are reusable,

synthetic sorbents including polyurethane foam are most widely use oil sorbent

( Asadpour et al., 2013).

Oil Spill

Exploration, production, storage and transportation of oil due to its high demand

by the world’s population have led to a large-scale oil release. There are also hundreds

of smaller spills per year wherein diesel fuel is a common form of hydrocarbon pollution

(“Summary of West,” 2020).Oil pollution is a serious problem in developing areas

because insufficient resources impede the response to oil spills (Chenn& Denison,

2011).
 Oil spill is the leakage or spreading of oil traces on the surface of a body of

water. It became an enormous environmental issue that happened in the 1960s as a

result of the maximization of petroleum exploration and usage of supertankers with a

capacity of 500, 000 metric tons of oil (Britannica, 2020). The largest marine oil spill that

occurred in history is the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico during 2010.

It was estimated to have leaked 4 million barrels of oil that flowed on the gulf for over 3

months (EPA, N.D.). Nevertheless, numerous amounts of minor oil spills are occurring

related to the discharges and tanker operations each year.

When oil scatters on the water surface, it encounters several processes, like

spreading, evaporation, dissolution, biodegradation, emulsification, photo-oxidation,

sinking, and tar ball formation, which results to complexity in cleaning up (Warnock et

al., 2015). Oil spreads swiftly in water that forms a slick on the surface, and

progressively submerges and accumulates in the sediments. Also, current and wind

cause it to be dispersed more rapidly leading to destruction and extinction of marine life

and environment (Fodrie& Heck, 2011). Along with the above conditions, different

physicochemical parameters, such as temperature and salinity, can also identify the

rate of oil spill spreading in bodies of water (Fingas, 2011).

The occurrence of oil spill continues to harm both terrestrial and aquatic

ecosystems, which has an adverse impact on the environment, economy, people and

biota (Chen & Denison, 2011; Worthington et al., 2018). It threatens ground water,

drinking water, and food staples like fish and other aquatic species (Worthington et al.,
2018). With these continuous challenges with oil leakages, it has led to constant

improvement of techniques of oil spill response to solve it immediately; thus, reducing

their dangerous impacts (Chang et al., 2014; Michel &Fingas, 2016). Moreover, there

have been calls for research into cost-effective technologies, which may ease the action

to this issue (“Summary of West,” 2020).

In relation to oil spill, oil is a liquid remain organic creatures or fossils used to

make fuels, gas, and products. It can be found underground or below ocean floor

reservoirs. It can be produced into different petroleum products such as gasoline,

asphalt, plastics, etc. (NOAA, N.D.). The effect of the spreading of oil in the environment

depend on the rate of its spreading. Most oils tend to spread in a horizontal motion, in a

smooth and slippery surface on the top of the water. There are various factors that

affect the ability of an oil spill to spread. This includes surface tension, specific gravity,

and viscosity. Surface tension is the attraction of the molecules of the liquid on its

surface. The surface tension of an oil is inversely proportional to its rate of spreading.

Specific gravity is known as the density of a substance compared to the density water.

Viscosity is the resistance of a liquid to flow. The same as the surface tension, the

viscosity of an oil is also inversely proportional to the rate of its spreading. The higher

the viscosity, the slower it is for an oil to spread (EPA, N.D.).

Oil spills cause significant environmental harm. Crude oil spills or their

contents have an effect on marine flora and fauna, as well as the environment. Such

contaminants are particularly hazardous to aquatic environments where biological self-

climates(Paulauskine, T. 2014).

Spills of oil and oil materials caused by collisions of tankers or submerged pipes,

as well as offshore oil rigs and refineries, are the most common causes of pollution of

fresh and seawater. Furthermore, ships generate a significant volume of oily

wastewater, such as bilge water, that must be cleaned before being discharged.Since it

includes seawater, particulates, used fuels, and detergents, bilge water is a difficult

wastewater to handle(Vlae 2011)

Oil spills cause significant environmental harm. Crude oil spills or their contents

have an effect on marine flora and fauna, as well as the environment. Such

contaminants are particularly hazardous to aquatic environments where biological self-

purification processes are slower (as in the Baltic Sea) than in warmer

climates(Paulauskine, T. 2014).

Marine oil spills are a nightmare for the climate, wreaking havoc on the

economy and ecology. PSOGs, or phase-selective organogelators, are molecules that

can selectively congeal oil from oil–water mixtures and have been suggested for oil spill

recovery. However, there is a significant flaw in the way the PSOG is applied to an oil

leak that has extended over a wide area.These PSOGs have been shown to be able to

be spread aerially as a dense powder onto a mixture of crude oil and sea water, and the

congealed oil scooped out (Vibhute, M. 2016).

Synthetic sorbents are artificial materials that are the same to plastics, such as

polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyacrylate (United States

Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], 2016).

These are commonly utilized in manufacturing special sleeves, mats, cloths, and

cushions (Lin et al., 2012; Li et al., 2012; Wu et al., 2014)Also, these synthetic materials

are designed for adsorption of liquids onto their surfaces. Other kinds, which include

cross-linked polymers and rubber materials absorb liquids into their solid structure.

Hence, it causes the sorbent to swell. Synthetic sorbents can absorb mostly up to 70

times their own weight in oil (EPA, 2016).

Polymer adsorbents display hydrophobic properties, low bulk density (0.10–0.45

kg/dm3), and large sorption capacity with regards to petroleum derivatives. The sorption

capacity ranges from few to several tens g/g; other studies show that it can exceed 100

g/g, depending on the type of the material (Lin et al., 2012; Li et al., 2012; Wu et al.,

2014).

They are mostly used in aqueous media because of their buoyancy and

hydrophobicity. However, it is rare in removing oil spills from rigid roads because they

are too light and can be simply blown by the wind. In addition, the possibility of returning

the absorbed liquid under outside forces,non-biodegradability, and flame retardant

properties are other disadvantages of these materials. It also includes the issue of

emission of toxic compounds during combustion. Even though the techniques that allow

the recovery of synthetic polymer sorbents after the sorption of oil, like centrifugation
and pressing are studied, these are very restricted because of the destruction of the

sorbent structure, oxidation or strong contamination (Bandura et al., 2017).

Absorbents are materials that pick up and collect liquid or aqueous solution that

is spread throughout its molecular structure causing the solid to swell. It should contain

for at least 70 percent material that is insoluble in excess liquid. Most of the absorbents

are used in removing final traces of oil as well as in areas that cannot be reached with

skimmers or booms. (EPA, 2016).

Synthetic absorbents are intended as waste material or a side product of

industrial processing, not originally as sorption materials. Some examples of synthetic

sorbents include as, rock-based substances such as perlite, clay, and limestone,

plastics such as polypropylene and polyurethane, carbon, cellulose, and others.

Synthetic sorbents are used as a sorption material to remove oil traces, carbon, and

chemical spills. They are treated by hydrophobizationin order to acquire hydrophobic

and oleophilic properties (Mojziset al., 2019).

The use of synthetic sorbents in oil spill recovery has increased in the last few

years. These sorbents are often used to wipe other oil spill recovery equipment, such as

skimmers and booms, after a spill cleanup operation. Sheets or rolls of sorbent are

often used for this purpose. Synthetic sorbents can often be reused by squeezing the oil

out of them, although extracting small amounts of oil from sorbents is sometimes more

expensive than using new sorbent. Furthermore, oil-soaked sorbent is difficult to handle
and can result in minor releases of oil between the regeneration area and the area

where the sorbent is used.(Finga 2011).

The history of sorption and ion-exchange processes begins with the use of

naturally occurring materials whose properties were found by chance and concludes

with the era of polymer and anorganic—or synthetic sorbents specially designed for a

specific project.Its goals are to study the sorption of anthropogenic radionuclides

(fission, initiation, corrosion components, and transuranium elements) on bentonites,

zeolites, hydroxyapatites, magnetic sorbent, ferrocyanides, and silica sorbent resulting

from nuclear power plant operations.Bentonites from Slovak mines can be included as a

deep geological dump for spent nuclear fuel and high-level hazardous waste as part of

a multi-barrier scheme(Galambos 2012) .

The substance and composition of sorbents, as well as the physical

characteristics of oil, affect their oil sorption and retention behaviour. The management

of used sorbents is a big challenge for a clean climate. In this case, biodegradable

materials that are readily available have greater potential than conventional

materials.The phenomena of oil sorption, methods of oil spill cleanup, properties of oil

sorbent products, fluid movement through fibrous materials, forms of fiber materials

envisaged for producing sorbents, and research methods for oil sorbents are all covered

in this article(Karan, C., PrabaRengasamy, R. S., Das, D. 2011).