An overview of biomass-based Oil/Water separation materials

The ever-increasing amount of oily wastewater from industries poses a serious threat to the ecological environment and human health, and separation of oil and water remains a worldwide challenge. Because there is a requirement to develop green, efficient and low-cost oil/water separation materials, biomass materials, including cellulose, lignin, chitosan, and wood, are widely used in oil/water adsorption and separation because of their unique spatial structure and abundant active functional groups. In this review, the current design and fabrication process of biomass-based adsorption/separation materials for oi/water separation applications are summarized and highlighted. We focus on the oil/water separation performance and material design concept of the biomass membrane, biomass aerogel, and biomass carbon aerogel from the oil/water separation mechanism and the physical morphology of oil/water separation materials. Furthermore, we propose new future directions for the functional improvement and structural design direction of new biomass-based oil/water separation materials based on the characteristics of biomass.