Cellulose Powders for Environmental Remediation - Environmental - Site Remediation

This new, absorbant material from EMPA wood research (EMPA is the German acronym for the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology) could be of assistance in future oil spill accidents: a chemically modified microcellulosic aerogel. The light-weight material absorbs the oil spill, remains floating on the water surface and can then be recovered. The absorbent is produced in an environmentally-friendly manner from recycled paper, wood or agricultural by-products. It can be produced without chemical modification, or modified to empart the aerogel with hydrophobic and oleophilic properties amongst others.