Cross-linking agents are chemical products that chemically form bonds between two hydrocarbons to solidify the oil. The reaction is a chemical one and typically can release a small amount of heat or absorb that amount of heat depending on the chemical used. Applichem has established long-term cooperation relations with nume... and dye enterprises both at home and abroad.

When solidifiers were popular in the 1980s, cross-linking agents were more commonly used than polymer sorbents. One must therefore be careful about interpreting some of the literature, for some of the tests may refer only to cross-linking agents or to polymer sorbents or products that are a combination of both, as will be described in the next section.

The schematic of how these products function is shown in Figure 22.2. This figure shows that the starting reagent, shown as Xs, mixed with the black oil to form the cross-links as shown by the jagged line. Also, it might be noted that with thick oil, the cross-linking product reacts mostly with the first oil with which it comes into contact. Most cross-linking agents react quickly and thus do not penetrate very thick oil.

Cross-linking agents that have been used include norbornene and anhydrides. Pelletier and Siron made a new series of oil-treating agents that solidify oil.4 These agents were prepared by reacting surfactants, alcohols, or carboxylic acids with alkychlorosilanes in light hydrocarbon solvents.

The advantages of cross-linking agents are that the final product is truly solidified (if mixed before the product reacts completely). If fully solidified, the product leaches little oil and forms a durable mat that is easy to recover. The disadvantages of this technology is that it is difficult to get complete solidification, especially of a thicker slick as the product is reactive and reacts with the first hydrocarbon with which it comes into contact. Cross-linking agents also have the disadvantage of linking with other hydrocarbons such as those in containment booms, docks, and organic matter.

Waste minimization approach can be as simple as reusing a waste material without any sort of modification to as complex as processes like electrolysis. Whatever the process is, minimizing waste is the major goal of all such concepts. In this regard, example of using tender coconut shells for plantation can be a real-life example of waste minimization at a household to local level. Coconut shells are anti-bacterial and anti-viral components, which can protect plants from different bacterial and viral infections and thus it can ensure smooth growth of the plants. Besides, it has its aesthetic components as well that increases beauty of gardens and households. This is why planting trees in coconut shell is an emerging idea in India. Besides when such plants are transferred to soil along with the shells, soil fertility increases through nutrient release after decomposition of the coconut shell. This simple strategy can be adopted in the other parts of the world to minimize improper disposal of the shell.