Abstract:
Oil spills pose a significant threat to both marine and freshwater ecosystems, affecting biodiversity,
public health, and socio-economic stability. Uganda, poised to commence commercial oil
production by 2026 through the Tilenga and Kingfisher projects with an estimated output of 6.5
million barrels per day, faces heightened risks of environmental contamination—particularly in
ecologically sensitive areas such as the Albertine Graben. Traditional oil spill remediation methods
often prove inefficient, recovering only a small fraction of spilled oil, thereby necessitating the
development of more effective and sustainable alternatives.
This research investigated the effectiveness of magnetite-zeolite nanocomposites as an
environmentally friendly, reusable adsorbent for crude oil spill remediation in Uganda. The
nanocomposite was synthesized and characterized using several techniques, alongside adsorption
isotherm studies. These analyses provided detailed insights into the material’s surface morphology,
structural integrity, chemical composition, and functional group interactions.
Batch adsorption experiments were conducted under varying operational conditions such as
contact time, initial oil concentration, and adsorbent dosage (Eskandari et al., 2018) to evaluate
the nanocomposite’s performance in terms of adsorption capacity, removal efficiency. The
Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was employed to statistically optimize the process
parameters using Central Composite Design (CCD) in Design Expert software and graphs drawn
with origin pro software.
The results demonstrated that the magnetite-zeolite nanocomposite exhibited high adsorption
efficiency, magnetic recoverability, validating its potential for large-scale application in oil spill
response strategies with 93% removal efficiency after Optimisation. This research contributes to
the advancement of sustainable oil spill remediation technologies and aligns with Sustainable
Development Goal 14 by offering an innovative and context-specific solution to Uganda’s oil
pollution challenges.
