Conventional synthetic sorbents for oil spill removal are the most widely applied materials, although they are not the optimal choices from an economic and environmental point of view. The use of inexpensive, abundant, non-toxic, biodegradable, and reusable lignocellulosic materials might be an alternative to conventional sorbents, with obvious positive impact on sustainability and circular economy. The objective of this paper was to review reports on the use of natural-based adsorbing materials for the restoration of water bodies threatened by oil spills. The use of raw and modified natural sorbents as a restoration tool, their sorption capacity, along with the individual results in conditions that have been implemented, were examined in detail. Modification methods for improving the hydrophobicity of natural sorbents were also extensively highlighted. Furthermore, an attempt was made to assess the advantages and limitations of each natural sorbent since one material is unlikely to encompass all potential oil spill scenarios. Finally, an evaluation was conducted in order to outline an integrated approach based on the terms of material–environment–economy.

The growth of MoS ₂ films by sulfurization of Mo foils at atmospheric pressure is reported. The growth procedure provides, in a controlled way, mono- and few-layer thick MoS ₂ films with substrate-scale uniformity across square-centimeter area on commercial foils without any pre- or post-treatment. The prepared few-layer MoS ₂ films are investigated as counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) by assessing their ability to catalyse the reduction of I ₃ ^– to I ^– in triiodide redox shuttles. The dependence of the MoS ₂ catalytic activity on the number of monolayers is explored down to the bilayer thickness, showing performance similar to that of, and stability against corrosion better than, Pt-based nanostructured film. The DSSC with the MoS ₂ –Mo counter electrode yields a photovoltaic energy conversion efficiency of 8.4%, very close to that of the Pt–FTO-based DSSC, i.e. 8.7%. The current results disclose a facile, cost-effective and green method for the fabrication of mechanically robust and chemically stable, few-layer MoS ₂ on flexible Mo substrates and further demonstrate that efficient counter electrodes for DSSCs can be prepared at thicknesses down to the 1–2 nm scale.