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Polymers
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Biomass-Based Polymer Membranes and Films: Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications
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Biomass-Based Polymer Membranes and Films: Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Biobased and Biodegradable Polymers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 November 2023) | Viewed by 6961

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Xinda You

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Material Engineering, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350108, China
Interests: biomass-based membranes; nanoporous materials; nanofiltration; water purfication; molecular separation; ionic separation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Qilin Lu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Fujian Key Laboratory of Novel Functional Textile Fibers and Materials, Minjiang University, Fuzhou 350108, China
Interests: cellulose nanocrystals; natural polymers; biomass composite materials; smart hydrogel film
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Polymer membranes and films have been widely applied in chemical separations, sensors, batteries, and flexible electronic devices. Biomass-based polymers provide a sustainable material platform for developing membranes and films, which feature the advantages of zero carbon emissions, abundant natural functional groups, easy degradation and tunable properties via different synthesis modification methods. In recent years, extensive efforts have been devoted to engineering biomass-based polymer membranes and films with tailored-made structures and outstanding performance. However, the variety of biomass-based polymers for membranes/films, in addition to fabrication technologies, is still limited. Furthermore, their applications still need to be expanded.

For this Special Issue of Polymers, full research papers, communications, and review articles are invited on the following topics:

  • Biomass-based polymer membrane/film synthesis;
  • Biomass-based polymer membrane/film characterization;
  • Biomass-based polymer membrane/film modification;
  • Biomass-based polymer membranes for chemical separations;
  • Biomass-based polymer films for sensors, batteries, and electronic devices.

Dr. Xinda You
Dr. Qilin Lu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biomass
  • polymer
  • membrane
  • film
  • micro-/ultra-/nanofiltration
  • reverse osmosis
  • forward osmosis
  • electrodialysis
  • mass transport in membrane
  • mixed matrix membranes
  • hydrogel film
  • functional films

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 4349 KiB  
Article
Tannic Acid-Induced Gelation of Aqueous Suspensions of Cellulose Nanocrystals
by Fengcai Lin, Wenyan Lin, Jingwen Chen, Chenyi Sun, Xiaoxiao Zheng, Yanlian Xu, Beili Lu, Jipeng Chen and Biao Huang
Polymers 2023, 15(20), 4092; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15204092 - 15 Oct 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2049
Abstract
Nanocellulose hydrogels are a crucial category of soft biomaterials with versatile applications in tissue engineering, artificial extracellular matrices, and drug-delivery systems. In the present work, a simple and novel method, involving the self-assembly of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) induced by tannic acid (TA), was [...] Read more.
Nanocellulose hydrogels are a crucial category of soft biomaterials with versatile applications in tissue engineering, artificial extracellular matrices, and drug-delivery systems. In the present work, a simple and novel method, involving the self-assembly of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) induced by tannic acid (TA), was developed to construct a stable hydrogel (SH-CNC/TA) with oriented porous network structures. The gelation process is driven by the H-bonding interaction between the hydroxyl groups of CNCs and the catechol groups of TA, as substantiated by the atoms in molecules topology analysis and FTIR spectra. Interestingly, the assembled hydrogels exhibited a tunable hierarchical porous structure and mechanical moduli by varying the mass ratio of CNCs to TA. Furthermore, these hydrogels also demonstrate rapid self-healing ability due to the dynamic nature of the H-bond. Additionally, the structural stability of the SH-CNC/TA hydrogel could be further enhanced and adjusted by introducing coordination bonding between metal cations and TA. This H-bonding driven self-assembly method may promote the development of smart cellulose hydrogels with unique microstructures and properties for biomedical and other applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomass-Based Polymer Membranes and Films: Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications)
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17 pages, 5248 KiB  
Article
Ultrastrong and Tough Urushiol-Based Ionic Conductive Double Network Hydrogels as Flexible Strain Sensors
by Fengcai Lin, Yiwen Zhu, Zixuan You, Wenyan Li, Jipeng Chen, Xiaoxiao Zheng, Guocai Zheng, Zifan Song, Xinda You and Yanlian Xu
Polymers 2023, 15(15), 3219; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15153219 - 28 Jul 2023
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1776
Abstract
Ionic conductive hydrogels have attracted increasing research interest in flexible electronics. However, the limited resilience and poor fatigue resistance of current ionic hydrogels significantly restrict their practical application. Herein, an urushiol-based ionic conductive double network hydrogel (PU/PVA-Li) was developed by one-pot thermal initiation [...] Read more.
Ionic conductive hydrogels have attracted increasing research interest in flexible electronics. However, the limited resilience and poor fatigue resistance of current ionic hydrogels significantly restrict their practical application. Herein, an urushiol-based ionic conductive double network hydrogel (PU/PVA-Li) was developed by one-pot thermal initiation polymerization assisted with freeze–thaw cycling and subsequent LiCl soaking. Such a PU/PVA-Li hydrogel comprises a primary network of covalently crosslinked polyurushiol (PU) and a secondary network formed by physically crosslinked poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) through crystalline regions. The obtained PU/PVA-Li hydrogel demonstrates exceptional mechanical properties, including ultrahigh strength (up to 3.4 MPa), remarkable toughness (up to 1868.6 kJ/m3), and outstanding fatigue resistance, which can be attributed to the synergistic effect of the interpenetrating network structure and dynamic physical interactions between PU and PVA chains. Moreover, the incorporation of LiCl into the hydrogels induces polymer chain contraction via ionic coordination, further enhancing their mechanical strength and resilience, which also impart exceptional ionic conductivity (2.62 mS/m) to the hydrogels. Based on these excellent characteristics of PU/PVA-Li hydrogel, a high-performance flexible strain sensor is developed, which exhibits high sensitivity, excellent stability, and reliability. This PU/PVA-Li hydrogel sensor can be effectively utilized as a wearable electronic device for monitoring various human joint movements. This PU/PVA-Li hydrogel sensor could also demonstrate its great potential in information encryption and decryption through Morse code. This work provides a facile strategy for designing versatile, ultrastrong, and tough ionic conductive hydrogels using sustainable natural extracts and biocompatible polymers. The developed hydrogels hold great potential as promising candidate materials for future flexible intelligent electronics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomass-Based Polymer Membranes and Films: Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications)
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17 pages, 6028 KiB  
Article
Urushiol-Based Benzoxazine Containing Sulfobetaine Groups for Sustainable Marine Antifouling Applications
by Jing Zhao, Jipeng Chen, Xiaoxiao Zheng, Qi Lin, Guocai Zheng, Yanlian Xu and Fengcai Lin
Polymers 2023, 15(10), 2383; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15102383 - 19 May 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2069
Abstract
Benzoxazine resins are new thermosetting resins with excellent thermal stability, mechanical properties, and a flexible molecular design, demonstrating promise for applications in marine antifouling coatings. However, designing a multifunctional green benzoxazine resin-derived antifouling coating that combines resistance to biological protein adhesion, a high [...] Read more.
Benzoxazine resins are new thermosetting resins with excellent thermal stability, mechanical properties, and a flexible molecular design, demonstrating promise for applications in marine antifouling coatings. However, designing a multifunctional green benzoxazine resin-derived antifouling coating that combines resistance to biological protein adhesion, a high antibacterial rate, and low algal adhesion is still challenging. In this study, a high-performance coating with a low environmental impact was synthesized using urushiol-based benzoxazine containing tertiary amines as the precursor, and a sulfobetaine moiety into the benzoxazine group was introduced. This sulfobetaine-functionalized urushiol-based polybenzoxazine coating (poly(U−ea/sb)) was capable of clearly killing marine biofouling bacteria adhered to the coating surface and significantly resisting protein attachment. poly(U−ea/sb) exhibited an antibacterial rate of 99.99% against common Gram negative bacteria (e.g., Escherichia coli and Vibrio alginolyticus) and Gram positive bacteria (e.g., Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus sp.), with >99% its algal inhibition activity, and it effectively prevented microbial adherence. Here, a dual-function crosslinkable zwitterionic polymer, which used an “offensive-defensive” tactic to improve the antifouling characteristics of the coating was presented. This simple, economic, and feasible strategy provides new ideas for the development of green marine antifouling coating materials with excellent performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomass-Based Polymer Membranes and Films: Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications)
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