Tailoring Nanoporous-Engineered Sponge Fiber Molecular Sieves with Ternary-Nested Architecture for Precise Molecular...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Chemical Engineering

Background:

• Polymeric fiber molecular sieves (PFMs) are crucial for molecular separations due to their high surface area and defined structures.
• The synthesis of PFMs with controlled hierarchical nanoporosity and self-standing properties remains a significant challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel strategy for fabricating PFMs with tailorable hierarchical nanoporosity.
• To investigate the performance of these PFMs in various molecular separation applications.

Main Methods:

• A cross-scale pore-forming strategy was employed, utilizing nanospace-confined chain-packing modulation.
• Hierarchical nanoporosity, including secondary ultramicropores (<7 Å) and micropores (<2 nm), was constructed within macro/mesoporous fiber skeletons.
• The pore size distribution was tuned to achieve specific molecular sieving capabilities.

Main Results:

• The fabricated PFMs exhibit ultrahigh surface area (860 m² g⁻¹) and large pore volume (0.6 cm³ g⁻¹).
• The materials possess self-standing properties and demonstrate excellent molecular sieving performance.
• Successful applications include acetophenone/phenyl ethanol separation, hydrogen peroxide purification, ethyl acetate separation, and CO₂ adsorption.

Conclusions:

• The developed fabrication method offers a feasible route for designing and producing advanced polymeric fibrous sieves.
• These PFMs show significant potential for large-scale molecular separation processes in chemical, energy, and environmental sectors.