Polyamide-poly (ionic liquid) reverse osmosis membrane with manifold excellent performance prepared via bionic capillary network for seawater desalinization

Interfacial Constructing Poly(ionic liquids) on Nanoporous Block Copolymers for Antifouling Ultrafiltration

The remarkable flexibility in structural tunability and designability of poly(ionic liquids) (PILs) has garnered significant attention. Integration of PILs with membranes, novel properties, and functionalities is anticipated for applications in the fields of membrane separation. Here, we develop a facile method to prepare PIL-functionalized membranes in a one-step process by combining selective swelling-induced pore generation and ionic liquid functionalization. The block copolymer of poly(2-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate)-block-polystyrene (PDMAEMA-b-PS, abbreviated as SDMA) films is immersed in a mixture of ethanol and bromopropane. In addition to the formation of nanoporous structures, an interfacial quaternization reaction between the PDMAEMA blocks and bromopropane occurs to generate poly(methacrylatoethyl propyl dimethylammonium bromide), resulting in the PIL-Br-functionalized membrane (SIL-Br) during the swelling process. It is noteworthy that bromopropane acting as a reactant also promotes the process of selective swelling. The water permeability of the resulting SIL-Br membrane is several times higher than that of the SDMA membrane, which is attributed to the increased pore size and significantly higher hydrophilicity of the SIL-Br membrane. In addition, the anion exchange of SIL-Br with l-proline (l-Pro) readily forms SIL-Pro-functionalized membranes (SIL-Pro), which exhibit exceptional electrical neutrality. Antifouling tests demonstrate that both SIL-Br and SIL-Pro have excellent resistance to proteins compared to the non-PIL-functionalization SDMA membrane, implying their great potential as antifouling membranes for water treatment.

Bioinspired Active Dynamic Dust Remover for Multiscale Stardust Repelling of Unmanned Probe Surface

Unmanned probes, mainly powered by solar panels, are effective tools for exploiting space resources to expand the human habitat. However, it remains a great challenge for the unmanned probes to actively repel multiscale dust particles in space. Inspired by the synergistic antifouling mechanism of fly wings and legs, a biomimetic dynamic antifouling surface (BDAS) was prepared based on a combination of self-assembly and template inversion. BDAS consists of flexible and controllable cilia with ultrahigh aspect ratio. Under the control of an external magnetic field, BDAS can perform three modes of dust removal tasks. The synergism of these three modes ensures that BDAS provides superior dust removal against multiscale dust particles in complex environments. Compared to conventional passive dust removal surfaces, the dust removal efficiency is increased by 941%. As proof of concept, BDAS was installed on a lunar probe and achieved effective removal of simulated lunar soil (up to 1158%).

Preparation of imidazole-modified paper membrane for selective extraction of gallic acid and its structural and functional analogues from Pomegranate Peel

In the search for pharmaceutically active compounds from natural products, it is crucial and challenging to develop separation methods that target not only structurally similar compounds but also a class of compounds with desired pharmaceutical functions. To achieve both structure-oriented and function-oriented selectivity, the choice of functional monomers with broad interactions or even biomimetic roles towards targeted compounds is essential. In this work, an imidazole (IM)-functionalized paper membrane was synthesized to realize selectivity. The IM was selected based on its capability to provide multiple interactions, participation in several bioprocesses, and experimental verification of adsorption performance. Using gallic acid as a representative component of Pomegranate Peel, the preparation conditions and extraction parameters were systematically investigated. The optimal membrane solid-phase extraction (MSPE) method allowed for enrichment of gallic acid from the complex matrix of Pomegranate Peel, enabling facile quantitative analysis with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.1 ng mL-1. Furthermore, with the aid of cheminformatics, the extracted compounds were found to be similar in both their structures and pharmaceutical functions. This work offers a novel approach to preparing a readily synthesized extraction membrane capable of isolating compounds with similar structures and pharmaceutical effects, and provides an MSPE-based analytical method for natural products.

Iron-containing poly(ionic liquid) membranes: a heterogeneous Fenton reaction and enhanced anti-fouling ability

Iron-containing poly(ionic liquid) membranes were prepared by Cu(0)-mediated reversible deactivation radical polymerization, which was achieved to catalyze a heterogeneous Fenton reaction and realize self-cleaning of the membrane surface.