This paper is a review on the treatment of volatile organic compounds using absorbents. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are carbon-based compounds with a boiling point ranging from 50℃ to 250℃. VOCs have been considered as contributors of photochemical smog and global warming as well as hazards to human health. VOCs can be removed by a variety of methods, including those that are destructive (incineration, catalytic oxidation, and biodegradation) and non-destructive (adsorption, absorption, and condensation). The removal performance of VOCs in the gas phase is influenced by gas-liquid mass transfer and/or the microbial activity depending on VOC properties such as solubility, diffusivity, bioavailability, and toxicity. Since the usual processes for VOCs removal involve water as a VOC absorbent, it is necessary to improve the removal efficiency of hydrophobic VOCs. In addition, VOC removal processes do not appear to show consistently satisfactory performance due to transient high-strength VOC loading in practical fields. To increase the gas-liquid mass transfer of hydrophobic VOCs and to prevent the functional deterioration due to transient high loading, the use of nonaqueous phase VOC absorbents is a promising strategy. This review offers a critical overview of the types, properties, and the applications of the VOC absorbents, including liquid organic solvents, ionic liquids, and solid polymers. This paper also details the advantages by employing the VOC absorbents for the removal of hydrophobic VOCs in the integrated process, absorption and biodegradation coupling process. The challenges of and future perspectives on the development of efficient VOC removal processes using VOC absorbents are briefly discussed.

Abstract
 1. 서 론
 2. VOCs 흡수제 종류 및 특성
  2.1 VOCs 물성 및 흡수제 종류
  2.2 액체 유기성 VOCs 흡수제의 특성
  2.3 이온성 액체 VOCs 흡수제의 특성
  2.4 고형 폴리머 VOCs 흡수제의 특성
 3. VOCs 흡수제를 이용한 물리학적 VOCs처리
  3.1 VOCs 처리 공정의 특성 및 처리효율에 미치는 주요 영향 인자
  3.2 처리 공정 종류 및 특성
 4. VOCs 흡수제와 생물학적 방법을 연계한복합 VOCs 처리
  4.1 VOCs 흡수제-생물 복합공정의 특성 및 종류
  4.2 Silicone oil-생물 복합공정에 의한 VOCs 처리
  4.3 기타 VOCs 흡수제-생물복합 공정에 의한 VOCs 처리
 5. 결 론
 References

• 윤정희(이화여자대학교 환경공학과) | Jeonghee Yun (Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Ewha Womans University)
• 조경숙(이화여자대학교 환경공학과) | Kyung-Suk Cho (Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Ewha Womans University) Corresponding author