In a research paper published on March 22—the United Nations-designated World Water Day—engineers and physicists from Tufts describe how they devised a low-cost membrane capable of rapidly filtering oil from water and oil mixtures without the membrane getting fouled.
The advance in material science could be a game changer in the battle against pollution. It’s well known that oil-contaminated water can have long-term harmful effects on wildlife and the environment. Current strategies to mitigate that harm include burning the oil in place or using mechanical devices, such as booms, skimmers, or absorbent material, to help clean up the mess. In practice these methods are expensive and not very effective, particularly for cleaning up large oil spills.