BACKGROUND Oil spills from oil tankers and ships or industrial accidents have serious impacts on the ecological environment. There is an urgent need for finding effective ways to resolve these problems. The use of low-cost and efficient adsorbents is considered to be one of the most effective ways. RESULTS In this study, an ultra-light 3D kapok fiber-reduced graphene oxide (TKF-rGO) aerogel was prepared by a simple and green one-step hydrothermal method. The kapok fiber used as skeleton was embedded in a graphene network to successfully form a 3D aerogel structure. The as-prepared TKF-rGO aerogel featured low density, excellent mechanical strength, high thermal stability, and high hydrophobic lipophilicity. Furthermore, continuous oil-water separation could be achieved by the aerogel when connected to a vacuum system. The adsorption capacity of TKF-rGO aerogel for various common oil products and organic solvents was 1.5-fold greater than that of pure rGO aerogel and six-fold greater than that of polypropylene melt spray, respectively. In addition, the initial adsorption capacity of the as-prepared TKF-rGO aerogel was maintained at 94% after eight cycles. CONCLUSION The TKF-rGO aerogel could be synthesized by a low-cost and green method, which was suitable for commercial production, and showed competitive adsorption capacities for oil removal. Thus, the TKF-rGO aerogel is expected to be employed as a promising adsorbent in the removal of oil spill or hazardous organic solvents from water. (c) 2019 Society of Chemical Industry