Assessing the Efficacy of Graphene, Graphene Oxide, and Graphene Oxide Encrusted with Gold Nanoparticles for Sulfur Removal from Crude Oil: An Innovative Experimental Investigation

Crude oil, consisting of hydrocarbons, is the leading global energy source. Sulfur is the most abundant element after carbon and hydrogen in the structure of crude oil. Sulfur and sulfur compounds in the structure of petroleum are dangerous for both the environment and human health due to the SOx gases they produce after combustion. Removing sulfur from oil is a costly and difficult process. Therefore, the sulfur content of crude oil directly affects the price of oil. This study investigated the adsorptive desulfurization performance of graphene, graphene oxide, and graphene oxide functionalized with gold nanoparticles. The synthesized adsorbents were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray analysis, reflection-absorption infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and then 0.02 to 0.1 g adsorbents were taken separately and placed in a flask that included 50 ml of crude oil. Each flask was stirred at 400 rpm under ambient temperature for 1 h. After the reaction, the adsorbent was separated from the mixture with the help of a centrifuge, and the residual sulfur amount was checked. It was determined that the sulfur removal performance after 1 h contact time was between 2.09%–5.48% for Graphene, 1.91%–4.06% for GO, and 0.575%–6.471% for AuNPs/GO.