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Zhejiang University recently announced a groundbreaking development in material science. A research team led by Professor Gao Chao from the Department of Polymer Science has successfully created an ultra-light aerogel named "carbon sponge." This remarkable material has set a new world record as the lightest solid ever made, with a density of just 0.16 mg/cm³. The achievement has been featured in *Nature* magazine, highlighting its incredible elasticity and oil-absorbing capabilities.
The carbon sponge is so lightweight that it can rest on a dandelion without causing any damage. This image, which was one of *Nature*'s top ten pictures of the year, inspired Gao Chao to explore the possibility of creating even lighter materials. For years, his team has been working on graphene-based macroscopic materials, aiming to develop a three-dimensional porous structure that could challenge existing limits.
In the lab, reporters observed various sizes of the carbon sponges—some as large as tennis balls and others as small as wine corks. Under an electron microscope, the material revealed a network of carbon nanotubes and graphene forming a highly porous structure. What makes this innovation unique is the ability to produce it in bulk while maintaining high controllability.
Traditionally, aerogels were made using sol-gel or template-directed methods. However, these approaches had limitations in scalability and structural control. To overcome this, Gao’s team developed a template-free freeze-drying technique. By freezing a solution of graphene and carbon nanotubes, they were able to create a flexible, shape-adjustable aerogel without the need for complex templates.
According to Gao Chao, the significance of this discovery lies not only in its extreme lightness but also in its simple and scalable production method. The material demonstrates exceptional resilience, bouncing back to its original form after being compressed by 80%. It also shows extraordinary oil absorption capacity, making it a promising candidate for environmental cleanup applications, such as oil spill remediation.
Gao emphasized that the goal is not to chase records but to focus on real-world applications. He envisions the carbon sponge being used to absorb oil spills at sea, with the absorbed oil being easily extracted and the sponge reused. Beyond that, the material could serve as an efficient insulation material, energy storage component, or catalyst support.
While the technology is still in the lab stage, Gao believes that its future depends on collaboration between researchers and industry. “We need the imagination of society and the support of the real world to bring this material to life,†he said.
This breakthrough marks a significant step forward in the field of advanced materials, opening up exciting possibilities for sustainable and practical applications. (Reporters: Zhou Wei, Zhu Haiyang, Pan Jiankai)