Application of Porous Carbon Macrostructures for Water Purification

Porous carbon macrostructures are blocks consisting of carbon nanostructures, for example, nanowires, nanotubes, nanosheets and nanoparticles. They inherit the large surface area of the nanostructures, which have high temperature and chemical stability, showing excellent performance in adsorption of oil, small organic molecules and ions of heavy metal in water. In addition, due to the macro-block structure with high mechanical strength, they are easy for manipulation and separation from water after use, which is beneficial for the recycling of both absorbent and adsorbate. The synthesis of carbon macrostructures and their application in water purification is a hot topic in chemistry, material sciences and environmental chemistry in recent few years. In this review, the synthesis of carbon macrostructures and their application in water purification, including filtration and adsorption, and their recycling are summarized. Firstly, the background for the need of carbon macrostructures for water purification is proposed, then, carbon macrostructures with different basic unit are discussed. In the third part, three main different methods to synthesize carbon macrostructures and their advantages and limitations are discussed separately. In the fourth part, the application of carbon macrostructures in the water purification is discussed in detail in three different aspects: for oil removal, adsorption of dye molecules and ions of heavy metal. At last, the challenges for the carbon macrostructures in the pollutant removal for water and their prospects are proposed.