Facile preparation of 3D graphene-based/polyvinylidene fluoride composite for organic solvents capture in spent fuel reprocessing

“Red oil” explosion is an important safety issue in spent fuel reprocessing and the most fundamental measure to prevent “red oil” explosion is the capture of organic solvents in water phase requiring further treatment. In this paper, superhydrophobic graphene/polyvinylidene fluoride composite aerogel (GA–PVDF) was synthesized by using HI as reductant under mild condition. The characterizations of SEM, FTIR, XRD, contact angle, mechanical property and oil/water absorption ability were performed to optimize the preparation conditions of GA–PVDF. It is found under optimal condition, the composite shows excellent water resistance, oil–water separation and mechanical properties. Furthermore, the recyclability and possible operation model of obtained GA–PVDF were also investigated. The result demonstrates that the composite material can be simply and efficiently used to capture the organic solvents without water uptake, which is attractive in the application of spent fuel reprocessing. Moreover, the recyclability of material also ensures the reduction of secondary waste. All of these indicate that GA–PVDF has great application potential for oil–water separation and “red oil” explosion prevention in spent fuel reprocessing.