UiO-66-NH2 Fabrics: Role of Trifluoroacetic Acid as a Modulator on MOF Uniform Coating on Electrospun Nanofibers and Efficient Decontamination of Chemical Warfare Agent Simulants

Protective fabrics with air-permeable and flexible features are crucial for practical application in the detoxification of chemical warfare agents (CWAs). Zr-based metal-organic frameworks (Zr-MOFs) are desirable to exhibit outstanding degradation toward CWAs. However, generally, MOFs with powders cannot afford the utilization as a protective layer directly; meanwhile, it is still a puzzling challenge to integrate MOFs with textiles efficiently. Herein, we develop a scalable and controllable strategy to fabricate UiO-66-NH2 on electrospun polyacrylonitrile nanofibers (UiO-66-NH2 fabrics) firmly and uniformly to capture and catalyze 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide (CEES) effectively for self-detoxification. The obtained UiO-66-NH2 fabrics are greatly capable of specific surface area, ample porosity, excellent crystallinity, and abundant catalytic active sites. Consequently, CEES can be removed efficiently up to 97.7% after 48 h by reaction and adsorption. The degradation products mainly including ethyl-2-hydroxyethyl sulfide, ether, bis[2-(ethylthio)ethyl], and 2-(2-(ethylthio)ethylamino) terephthalic acid are detected. Moreover, the obtained nanofibrous fabrics possess air-permeable, washable, and flexible as well as lightweight merits, totally ensuring their promising engineering applications for protective clothing.

Automated summary

This study developed a scalable and controllable strategy to fabricate UiO-66-NH2 on electrospun polyacrylonitrile nanofibers (UiO-66-NH2 fabrics) to capture and catalyze 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide (CEES) effectively for self-detoxification. The obtained UiO-66-NH2 fabrics are capable of specific surface area, porosity, crystallinity, and abundant catalytic active sites, enabling efficient removal of CEES up to 97.7% after 48 h. The nanofibrous fabrics possess air-permeable, washable, flexible, and lightweight features, ensuring promising engineering applications for protective clothing.