Green biomass-derived materials for oil spill response: recent advancements and future perspectives

Intensive energy production and consumption are associated with many oil spill accidents which can result in environmental pollution and other socio-economic impacts. Oil/water separation and surface washing strategies have been adopted to remove oil from both water and shorelines. Recently, green biomass-derived materials have attracted tremendous interest from researchers since they are low-cost, non-toxic, widely available, and environmentally friendly. This review comprehensively summarizes recent advances using such green materials for oil spill treatment, namely, oil/water filtration, oil sorption, and surface washing. The preparation methods, wettability characteristics, oil removal performance, and stability of green biomass-derived materials were introduced. The perspectives for future challenges and prospects of green materials in oil spill response are also proposed.