Recent advances in the development of nanofiber-based aerogel for oil-water separation: A review

Currently, the offshore oil spills and the massive discharge of industrial waste and civil oils have caused irreversible harm to residents and marine organisms and are some of the most serious global challenges. Aerogels have gained widespread attention for their highly porous three-dimensional network structure, high specific surface area, low density, and excellent adsorption properties. Among them, nanofiber-based aerogels manufactured via electrostatic spinning for oil-water separation have become one of the emerging directions to treat oil-water emulsions. In this paper, we give a comprehensive review of recent research progress on nanofiber-based aerogel materials for oil-water separation to facilitate the field’s progress. Typical examples of hydrophilic-lipophobic, lipophilic-hydrophobic, amphiphilic composite, wettability-switchable, and Janus nanofiber-based aerogels are systematically summarized. Potential defects of individual types of separation nanofiber-based aerogels and potential solutions are provided. This review mainly includes an overview of nanofiber-based aerogels, preparing methods and principles of separation, and an outlook on future directions and innovations.