Promotion of thermochromic luminous polysulfone membrane towards smart high-temperature PM2.5 filtration and fire alarming

Abstract

Particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) has become a major threat to human lives. To minimize the adverse effect of high temperature PM2.5, the best way is to alert and filter out the PM2.5 simultaneously. However, it remains a challenge to design filters with combined merits of high-performance, fire-retardancy and thermal response. In this work, we prepare the thermochromic luminous polysulfone membrane with high-temperature PM2.5 filtration and alarming property. The dual luminous center containing covalent donor–acceptor (DA) structure and metal–ligand interaction are incorporated and electrospun into structure unified nanofibers. And different thermal responsiveness is observed for the dual luminous center. The high PM2.5 filtration efficiency (99.1%), low pressure drops (98 Pa) and heat-resistant (Tg > 236 °C) membrane can be directly applied on an in-situ high-temperature PM2.5 filtration and monitoring device, with the emission color variable from red to cyan in a wide range. More importantly, PBN composite filters show excellent flame retardancy in comparison with the commercial PE fabrics, and the color indicating property functions well even under fire. Therefore, the PBN composite membrane holds great potential in the fields of high-temperature PM2.5 filtration and fire alarming.