Aerogel As an Emerging Platform for Engineering Low-Dimensional Nanomaterials

Nanomaterials find wide applications in environment, health and energy due to their higher surface area and more accessible active sites, as well as different electronic band structures from bulk phase materials. However, bottlenecks hindering their practical applications are difficult handling, poor recyclability and reusability, and adverse impacts to environment and health. Engineering nanomaterials has attracted general interest by assembling low-dimensional nanomaterials into hierarchical materials and functional devices. Here we develop a general strategy to assemble low-dimensional nanomaterials (e.g., 0D nanoparticles, 1D nanotubes, 2D nanosheets) into three-dimensional monolithic aerogels. Several application scenarios are demonstrated nanomaterial applications in moisture resistance, air purification, and water treatment. Structural evolution of nanomaterials, physicochemical properties of aerogel networks, and mass transfer and conversion within monolithic systems were also investigated to elucidate the host-guest interaction between low-dimensional nanomaterials and aerogel networks.