Ben-Gurion University team develops aerogel that captures oil and supports biodegradation

Researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev have developed a nutrient-supplemented carbonized aerogel designed to tackle oil and fuel pollution in water through two linked mechanisms: physical adsorption and biological degradation.

The material is made from cellulose fibers and enriched with nitrogen and phosphorus. Those nutrients support oil-degrading bacteria after hydrocarbons are trapped in the porous material. Ben-Gurion University's September 1 announcement said laboratory tests found the material could adsorb approximately 100 times its own weight in crude oil, fuel and other hydrocarbons.

The peer-reviewed paper, published in Chemical Engineering Journal Advances in August, gives a more specific laboratory result for the tested nutrient-supplemented carbonized aerogel: roughly 78 grams of crude oil per gram of material, with the journal highlights describing adsorption capacity around 80 times the aerogel's mass. The paper also reports that nutrients remained bound to the material and improved the rate and extent of biodegradation compared with aerogel without nutrient supplementation.

That distinction matters. The technology is promising, but the reported performance comes from laboratory experiments; it should not yet be described as proven at the scale of a major marine spill. Ben-Gurion University says the technology is undergoing patent protection through BGN Technologies.

The project was led by Prof. Ariel Kushmaro, with the study headed by Dr. Danit Lisa Karsagi Byron and a multidisciplinary Ben-Gurion University research team. It is an example of Israeli environmental biotechnology aimed at connecting rapid containment with longer-term ecological recovery rather than treating those as separate stages.

Sources: - Ben-Gurion University, September 1, 2026: https://www.bgu.ac.il/en/news-and-articles/bgu-aerogel-adsorbs-oil-and-supports-biodegradation/ - Ben-Gurion University Research Portal: https://cris.bgu.ac.il/en/publications/nutrient-supplemented-carbonized-aerogels-for-integrated-oil-adso/ - Chemical Engineering Journal Advances / ScienceDirect: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666821126003583 - The Times of Israel, September 6, 2026: https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-scientists-develop-huge-sponge-to-mop-up-and-eat-oil-spills/