Discovering global research trends and scientific progress in biofiltration of air: a scientometric analysis and outlook

• Scientific status in the application of biofiltration of air was explored. • 1475 bibliographic records from the Web of Science are undertaken for peer review. • The results define trends, highlights, and knowledge gaps in biofiltration research. • Found that biofiltration of air research increased significantly in recent years. • The outcomes can be beneficial to practitioners in the field of air biofiltration. Industries are seriously facing the challenge of air pollution, which can be detrimental to the environment and living beings. Therefore, it is crucial to control this pollution with an eco-friendly approach such as biofiltration. The purpose of the manuscript is to conduct a statistical analysis to analyze the “biofiltration of air” theme and to explore the current state of research development and advancement during 1991–2023. Using relevant keywords, 1475 bibliographic records were identified from the Web of Science database. Based on the findings, research progress was mapped to determine the scientific status, prolific author, and county collaboration, with current scientific and technological developments and knowledge gaps. The USA and China are the world leaders in the use of biofilters for polluted air treatment. The findings of this review identified that the research on biofiltration of air has increased significantly over 33 years. The research trends and potential advancement in biofiltration systems, catalytic oxidation processes, bioaugmentation strategy, and integration technology were addressed. Further, the recent progress of biofiltration modeling using theoretical modeling and ANN was highlighted. Further, the significance of biofilters and their specific progress on biological aspects, biofilter design and operation, pollutant-specific research, and new materials and technologies were emphasized. This is the first study to provide an in-depth discussion and understanding of scientific progress via scientometric review to realize the panorama of global research of polluted air research. The results of this bibliometric review can be constructive inputs to researchers and practitioners of air biofiltration.