Magnetic Colloid Petroleum Oil Clean-Up of Surface, Depth, and Shores

Problem: Oil spill contamination cannot be cleaned rapidly and completely from varied enviroments. Technology: Ferrofluids are colloidal dispersions of magnetic nanoparticles that can be manipulated with an external magnetic field. This invention proposes to apply ferrofluidic principles to the mitigation of oil contamination of solids (wetlands), water surfaces and water sub-surfaces. The particle size, surfaces and dispersants can all be optimized for stabilizing oil removal, collectability and water purification. Christopher Noble crn@mit.edu