Developing novel absorbent materials with both rapid absorption speed and efficient recovery of viscous crude oils presents an enticing prospect for crude cleanup and utilization. Herein, a strategy to synergistically reduce the viscosity of crude oil by using solar-assisted chemical emulsifiers is proposed, which can directly modify commercial sponges to achieve rapid adsorption and efficient recovery of crude oil by using modified commercial sponges. SiO₂ nanofluids (SiO₂ nfs), which acted as amphipathic chemical emulsifiers, were confirmed by the molecular dynamics results to have a strong physical action and emulsification effect on crude oil. Benefiting from the synergistic advantages of the SiO₂ nfs and photo-thermal properties of the dopamine layer, compared to a commercial polyurethane sponge, the modified sponge exhibited a 10% increase in absorption capacity and a three order of magnitude increase in viscous crude oil absorption rate, and its crude oil recovery rate remained stable at over 90% after 10 cycles. This novel, modified sponge with high porosity, flame retardance, and durability has excellent potential for practical viscous crude oil spill cleanup applications with fast recovery and efficient cleanup under harsh conditions. This convenient and efficient manufacturing technique can be extended to other commercial sponges and is suitable for the large-scale production of new adsorbent materials.

The heterogeneous Fenton system has drawn great attention in recent years due to its effective degradation of polluted water capability without limitation of the pH range and avoiding excess ferric hydroxide sludge. Therefore, simple chemical precipitation and vacuum filtration method for manufacturing the heterogeneous Fenton aramid nanofibers (ANFs)/ferrous oxalate (FeC₂O₄) composite membrane catalysts with excellent degradation of methylene blue (MB) is reported in the study. The morphology and structure of materials synthesized were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray energy spectrum analysis (EDS), infrared spectrometer (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) equipment. The 10 ppm MB degradation efficiency of composite catalyst and ferrous oxalate (FeC₂O₄) within 15 min were 94.5% and 91.6%, respectively. The content of methylene blue was measured by a UV-Vis spectrophotometer. Moreover, the dye degradation efficiency still could achieve 92% after five cycles, indicating the composite catalyst with excellent chemical stability and reusability. Simultaneously, the composite catalyst membrane can degrade not only MB but also rhodamine B (RB), orange II (O II), and methyl orange (MO). This study represents a new avenue for the fabrication of heterogeneous Fenton catalysts and will contribute to dye wastewater purification, especially in the degradation of methylene blue.