pH-responsive nano-structured membranes prepared from oppositely charged block copolymer nanoparticles and iron oxide nanoparticles

pH-responsive membranes: Mechanisms, fabrications, and applications

Understanding the mechanisms of pH-responsiveness allows researchers to design and fabricate membranes with specific functionalities for various applications. The pH-responsive membranes (PRMs) are particular categories of membranes that have an amazing aptitude to change their properties such as permeability, selectivity and surface charge in response to changes in pH levels. This review provides a brief introduction to mechanisms of pH-responsiveness in polymers and categorizes the applied polymers and functional groups. After that, different techniques for fabricating pH-responsive membranes such as grafting, the blending of pH-responsive polymers/microgels/nanomaterials, novel polymers and graphene-layered PRMs are discussed. The application of PRMs in different processes such as filtration membranes, reverse osmosis, drug delivery, gas separation, pervaporation and self-cleaning/antifouling properties with perspective to the challenges and future progress are reviewed. Lastly, the development and limitations of PRM fabrications and applications are compared to provide inclusive information for the advancement of next-generation PRMs with improved separation and filtration performance.

Design, characterization and applications of nanocolloidal hydrogels

Nanocolloidal gels (NCGs) are an emerging class of soft matter, in which nanoparticles act as building blocks of the colloidal network. Chemical or physical crosslinking enables NCG synthesis and assembly from a broad range of nanoparticles, polymers, and low-molecular weight molecules. The synergistic properties of NCGs are governed by nanoparticle composition, dimensions and shape, the mechanism of nanoparticle bonding, and the NCG architecture, as well as the nature of molecular crosslinkers. Nanocolloidal gels find applications in soft robotics, bioengineering, optically active coatings and sensors, optoelectronic devices, and absorbents. This review summarizes currently scattered aspects of NCG formation, properties, characterization, and applications. We describe the diversity of NCG building blocks, discuss the mechanisms of NCG formation, review characterization techniques, outline NCG fabrication and processing methods, and highlight most common NCG applications. The review is concluded with the discussion of perspectives in the design and development of NCGs.

Advanced stimuli-responsive membranes for smart separation

Membranes have been extensively studied and applied in various fields owing to their high energy efficiency and small environmental impact. Further conferring membranes with stimuli responsiveness can allow them to dynamically tune their pore structure and/or surface properties for efficient separation performance. This review summarizes and discusses important developments and achievements in stimuli-responsive membranes. The most commonly utilized stimuli, including light, pH, temperature, ions, and electric and magnetic fields, are discussed in detail. Special attention is given to stimuli-responsive control of membrane pore structure (pore size and porosity/connectivity) and surface properties (wettability, surface topology, and surface charge), from the perspective of determining the appropriate membrane properties and microstructures. This review also focuses on strategies to prepare stimuli-responsive membranes, including blending, casting, polymerization, self-assembly, and electrospinning. Smart applications for separations are also reviewed as well as a discussion of remaining challenges and future prospects in this exciting field. This review offers critical insights for the membrane and broader materials science communities regarding the on-demand and dynamic control of membrane structures and properties. We hope that this review will inspire the design of novel stimuli-responsive membranes to promote sustainable development and make progress toward commercialization.

Methyl Methacrylate-Based Copolymers: Recent Developments in the Areas of Transparent and Stretchable Active Matrices

The recent advancements of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) as a transparent flexible polymer material have been utilized in numerous areas of engineering and materials science. PMMA-based copolymers demonstrate outstanding mechanical and optical properties owing to high transparency, lightweight nature, high impact resistance, and stress relaxation across glass transition temperature. These copolymers have unique characteristics of retaining optical and microstructural integrities during successive bending or elongations which make them an attractive choice for materials of stretchable electronics. In particular, there has been an escalated rise in the use of methyl methacrylate (MMA)-based transparent and stretchable copolymer films during the recent decades. Therefore, we have highlighted these recent developments into a comprehensive review in order to aid the future progress in these diverse fields. Herein, we have highlighted the scope of MMA as an important building block for the synthesis of highly transparent and flexible materials. The synthetic pathways of these copolymer materials and the resulting mechanical properties have been discussed. Moreover, the immense scope of these copolymer films has been highlighted by virtue of their applications in various industries.

Mechanistic Insights of a Thermoresponsive Interface for Fouling Control of Thin-Film Composite Nanofiltration Membranes

In spite of extensive research, fouling is still the main challenge for nanofiltration membranes, generating an extra transport resistance and requiring a larger operational pressure in practical applications. We fabricated a highly antifouling nanofiltration membrane by grafting poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) chains on a bromine-containing polyamide layer. The resulting membrane was found to have a double permeance compared to the pristine membrane, while the rejection of multivalent ions remained the same. In addition, PNIPAM chains yielded a better deposition resistance and adhesion resistance, thereby mitigating the increase of fouling and promoting the recovery of flux during the filtration and traditional cleaning stages, respectively. Moreover, PNIPAM chains shrank when the water temperature was above the lower critical solution temperature (LCST), indicating the formation of a buffer layer between the membrane and pollutants. The buffer layer would eliminate the membrane-foulant interaction energy, thus further enhancing the detachment of pollutants. This simple and efficient cleaning method could act as an enhanced cleaning procedure to remove irreversible fouling. This provides new insights into the fabrication of enhanced antifouling membranes using smart responsive polymer chains.

Experimental Design in Polymer Chemistry-A Guide towards True Optimization of a RAFT Polymerization Using Design of Experiments (DoE)

Despite the great potential of design of experiments (DoE) for efficiency and plannability in academic research, it remains a method predominantly used in industrial processes. From our perspective though, DoE additionally provides greater information gain than conventional experimentation approaches, even for more complex systems such as chemical reactions. Hence, this work presents a comprehensive DoE investigation on thermally initiated reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization of methacrylamide (MAAm). To facilitate the adaptation of DoE for virtually every other polymerization, this work provides a step-by-step application guide emphasizing the biggest challenges along the way. Optimization of the RAFT system was achieved via response surface methodology utilizing a face-centered central composite design (FC-CCD). Highly accurate prediction models for the responses of monomer conversion, theoretical and apparent number averaged molecular weights, and dispersity are presented. The obtained equations not only facilitate thorough understanding of the observed system but also allow selection of synthetic targets for each individual response by prediction of the respective optimal factor settings. This work successfully demonstrates the great capability of DoE in academic research and aims to encourage fellow scientists to incorporate the technique into their repertoire of experimental strategies.

Fabrication of pH-Responsive Polyimide Polyacrylic Acid Smart Gating Membranes: Ultrafast Method Using 248 nm Krypton Fluoride Excimer Laser

pH-responsive smart gating membranes were developed using a two-step fabricating process. In the first step, a porous polyimide (PI) support membrane with ordered, regular, and well-defined pores was obtained with a 248 nm KrF excimer laser using a lithography technique. The porous membranes were then grafted with poly(acrylic acid) (PAAc) hydrogel by free radical polymerization using the same excimer laser. The number of pulses and frequency could be varied to obtain a range of water permeabilities. Permeability of membrane changed significantly due to swelling and deswelling of PAAc inside the pores at pH 7 and pH 3, respectively. These hydrogel networks were firmly grafted inside pores and remained mechanically intact even after using high pressure during permeability studies. PAAc grafting was confirmed using ATR-FTIR. PAAc hydrogel distribution inside membrane pores was analyzed using SEM and fluorescence microscopy. To quantify the amount of polymer grafted, TGA studies were carried out. Diffusion studies were also carried out using caffeine as a drug molecule to evaluate the application of membrane in drug delivery devices. The linear drug release profile obtained from the study confirmed the potential application of membrane for drug delivery purposes. Results obtained also suggest that the fabrication method developed is fast, efficient, solvent-free, and economical.