Emerging Porous Materials for Adsorptive Removal of Microplastics and Nanoplastics from Aquatic Environments: A Review

The widespread presence of microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) in aquatic environments poses significant environmental and health risks due to their persistence and potential toxicity. Conventional water treatment methods often fail to effectively remove these contaminants, underscoring the need for more advanced remediation strategies. Adsorption using porous materials has emerged as a promising, cost-effective, and efficient approach. This review summarizes recent advances in the development and application of various porous adsorbents, including sponge-, aerogel-, and hydrogel-based materials, metal-organic frameworks, metal-based materials, and carbon-based adsorbents, aiming to provide a comprehensive understanding of their effectiveness in removing MPs/NPs from aquatic systems. Their performance is critically evaluated in terms of removal efficiency, adsorption capacity, and underlying mechanisms. Furthermore, the current challenges and future prospects of these advanced materials are critically examined, together with proposed research directions to guide the development of practical porous adsorbents for effective mitigation of plastic pollution.