Rapid formation of metal-monophenolic networks on polymer membranes for oil/water separation and dye adsorption

Surface deposition based on metal-phenolic networks (MPNs) has received increasing interest in recent years. The catechol structure is generally considered to be essential to the formation of MPNs. Our most recent results have demonstrated that some kinds of monophenols can form MPNs on substrate surfaces. Herein, we report a fast and effective surface-coating system based on the coordination of 3-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-2-propenoic acid, a kind of monophenol, with Fe3+. Compared with other metal ions such as Cu2+ and Ni2+, Fe3+ with stronger electron acceptability can coordinate with the monophenol more strongly to form MPNs, and moreover, the deposition time significantly decreases to 40 min from generally 24 h. It is demonstrated that the deposition process is controlled by the coordination, Fe3+ hydrolysis, and deprotonation of the monophenol. The coatings endow substrates such as polypropylene microfiltration membrane with underwater superoleophobicity, which can be applied in oil/water separation with high separation efficiency and great long-term stability. In addition, the coated membranes are positively charged and thus are useful in selective adsorption of dyes. The present work not only provides a novel, fast, and one-step deposition method to fabricate MPNs, but also demonstrates that the fabrication efficiency of monophenol-based MPNs is comparable with that of polyphenol-based MPNs. (C) 2021 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.

Automated summary

Surface deposition based on metal-phenolic networks (MPNs) has gained attention recently. Coordination of 3-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-2-propenoic acid with Fe3+ leads to fast and effective surface-coating system, showing potential for oil/water separation and selective adsorption of dyes.