Porous sponge with surface modified for superhydrophobic/superoleophilic and special functionalization

Sponge-based materials have attracted wide attention because of their low cost, easy to manufacture and environmental-friendly. Sponge-based materials have the characteristics of large porosity and large specific surface area, which make sponge-based materials both lipophilic and hydrophilic, so it is necessary to modify the surface of sponge-based materials. The sponge-based material can obtain superhydrophobic properties while maintaining high porosity and large specific surface area. The superhydrophobic properties of sponge-based materials were obtained by reducing material surface energy and constructing surface rough structure. In this paper, four common surface modified materials are reviewed, which are polydopamine, organosilicons, carbon-based material and stearic acid. In order to improve the working efficiency of superhydrophobic sponge. The superhydrophobic sponge has certain functionality by adding special nanoparticles or functional materials in the process of superhydrophobic modification, such as magnetism, photocatalysis, flame retardancy and antibacterial. Functionalization enables the superhydrophobic sponge to obtain controllability, self-cleaning ability, thermal stability and anti-corrosion ability. We reviewed the hydrophobic and oil absorption abilities of different modified superhydrophobic sponges, and summarized the stability of sponges under the conditions of strong acid, strong alkali and extrusion cycle. Furthermore, the future development of superhydrophobic sponge is prospected.