Environmental Resource Recovery of Oil-Based Derivatives Using Ionic Liquid

The surge in the market for commercially valuable materials from waste is a key driver for the novel reuse of drilling wastes, coupled with competitive regulatory requirements to ensure a sustainable approach. This study investigates the environmental resource recovery of oil-based derivatives in a simulated mix comprising barite, phenanthrene, fluoranthene, and anthracene using a room-temperature ionic liquid – 1-propyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide (propyIMIMBr). The mixture was analysed for solubility in ionic liquids. The results revealed the eventual solubility of anthracene in the four-component mix without decomposing the ionic liquid. This finding is significant in recovering valuable materials from a simulated drilling waste mix and separating key pollutants if optimised as a secondary waste treatment method.