Construction of Antibacterial, Superwetting, Catalytic, and Porous Lignocellulosic Nanofibril Composites for Wastewater Purification

Abstract

AbstractTo simultaneously dispose bacteria, dyes and oils in complex wastewater, the construction of antibacterial, superwetting, catalytic and porous lignocellulosic nanofibril composites are introduced. As‐prepared CPA composites consist of Ag@TiO2 nanoparticles, lignocellulosic nanofibril and polyvinyl alcohol under crosslinking of glutaraldehyde. Specifically, a superwetting CPA membrane with oil contact angle (OCA) of 159° ± 2° is prepared by vacuum filtrating and freeze‐drying methods, while a superwetting CPA aerogel (OCA: 156° ± 2°) is directly obtained via freeze‐drying the nanocomposite suspension. Such CPA membrane has a higher oil‐water separation efficiency (98.95%), and CPA aerogel displays a better dye degradation capacity (98.8%) under sunlight. Notably, the aerogel can withstand 2299 times of its own weight without deformation in air, but squash 22% of its own height and return to its original state underwater. Modified CPA aerogel gains an opposite superwetting property with water contact angle (WCA) of 147° ± 2° and a stronger oil adsorption capacity (37.6 g g‐1) than modified CPA membrane (WCA: 151° ± 2°). Besides, CPA composites shows remarkable durability (toward acid, alkali, brine solution, and friction test) and excellent antibacterial properties (against S. aureus, B. subtilis, E. coli). Predictably, this strategy may significantly simplify and accelerate the purification of complex wastewater, and offer more options for different application scenarios.