Water Purification Using Functionalized Cellulosic Fibers with Nonleaching Bacteria Adsorbing Properties

Fundamental aspects of the non-covalent modification of cellulose via polymer adsorption

The increasing need for new material applications based on cellulose demands increased functional diversity and thus new functionalisation/modification approaches. The non-covalent modification of cellulose fibres via the adsorption of functional polymers has emerged as a promising route for tailoring the properties of material. This review focuses on fundamental aspects of polymer adsorption on cellulose surfaces, where the adsorption of polyelectrolytes and non-polyelectrolytes are treated separately. Adsorption studies on model surfaces as well as cellulose macro-fibres are reviewed. A correlation of the adsorption findings with the Scheutjens-Fleer polymer adsorption theory is provided, allowing the fundamentals behind the polymer adsorption phenomenon and its context in utilization of cellulose fibres to be understood.

Effects of Microscopic Properties on Macroscopic Thermal Conductivity for Convective Heat Transfer in Porous Materials

Porous materials are widely used in many heat transfer applications. Modeling porous materials at the microscopic level can accurately incorporate the detailed structure and substance parameters and thus provides valuable information for the complex heat transfer processes in such media. In this study, we use the generalized periodic boundary condition for pore-scale simulations of thermal flows in porous materials. A two-dimensional porous model consisting of circular solid domains is considered, and comprehensive simulations are performed to study the influences on macroscopic thermal conductivity from several microscopic system parameters, including the porosity, Reynolds number, and periodic unit aspect ratio and the thermal conductance at the solid–fluid interface. Our results show that, even at the same porosity and Reynolds number, the aspect ratio of the periodic unit and the interfacial thermal conductance can significantly affect the macroscopic thermal behaviors of porous materials. Qualitative analysis is also provided to relate the apparent thermal conductivity to the complex flow and temperature distributions in the microscopic porous structure. The method, findings and discussions presented in this paper could be useful for fundamental studies, material development, and engineering applications of porous thermal flow systems.

In Situ Preparation of Silver Nanoparticles in Paper by Reduction with Alkaline Glucose Solutions

Percolation of contaminated water through paper sheets containing silver nanoparticles is a promising way to provide emergency drinking water. The silver nanoparticles are deposited by the in situ reduction of silver nitrate on the cellulose fibers of an absorbent blotting paper sheet. Sodium borohydride has been used as the reductant but is toxic and expensive. Glucose is a benign alternative but is much less reactive. In this note, we demonstrate an improved way to produce silver nanoparticles in paper sheets by adding sodium hydroxide to the glucose reductant. The silver content of the sheets, measured by diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, was around 2-3 mg of silver per gram of dry paper. This was sufficient to reduce the concentration of a model Escherichia coli suspension after percolation through the sheet.