Photothermal Conversion of Hydrogel-Based Biomaterial.

Traditional energy from fossil fuels like petroleum and coal is limited and contributes to global environmental pollution and climate change. Developing sustainable and eco-friendly energy is crucial for addressing significant challenges such as climate change, energy dilemma and achieving the long-term development of human society. Biomass hydrogels, which are easily synthesized and modified, have diverse sources and can be designed for different applications. They are being extensively researched for their applications in artificial intelligence, flexible sensing, biomedicine, and food packaging. The article summarizes recent advances in the preparation and applications of biomass-based photothermal conversion hydrogels, discussing the light source, photothermal agents, matrix, and preparation methods in detail. It also explores the use of these hydrogels in seawater desalination, photothermal therapy, antibacterial agents, and light-activated materials, offering new ideas for developing sustainable, efficient, and advanced photothermal conversion biomass hydrogel materials. The article concludes with suggestions for future research, highlighting the challenges and prospects in this field and paving the way for developing of long-lasting, efficient energy materials.

Fabrication of chitosan-based fluorescent hydrogel membranes cross-linked with bisbenzaldehyde for efficient selective detection and adsorption of Fe2.

Chitosan, as a natural biomass material, is green, recyclable, sustainable and well biocompatible. The molecular chain is rich in active groups such as amino and hydroxyl groups, and its preparation of fluorescent probes has the advantages of biocompatibility and efficient detection performance. In this study, a bis(benzaldehyde) (BHD) fluorescent functional molecule was designed. Then a series of fluorescent chitosan-based hydrogel films (CSBHD) were prepared using chitosan as raw material and BHD as cross-linking agent. As a fluorescent probe for metal ions, CSBHD was able to efficiently detect Fe2+ with a linear correlation of fluorescence intensity in the range of 0-160 µM, and the limit of detection (LOD) was 0.55 µM. Moreover, it has excellent adsorption performance for Fe2+ ions, with a maximum adsorption capacity of 223.5 g/mg at 500 mg/L Fe2+ concentration. Finally, we characterised the structure and microscopic morphology of CSBHD films and found that CSBHD as a hydrogel film has a high cross-linking density, good water resistance, excellent thermal stability, strong resistance to swelling, and excellent stability in cycling tests. Hence, it has great potential for application in adsorption and detection of Fe2+ ions. It also provides a good strategy for the application of chitosan based fluorescent probe materials in environmental monitoring and heavy metal ion adsorption.

Progress in preparation and properties of chitosan-based hydrogels.

Chitosan is a kind of natural polysaccharide biomass with the second highest content in nature after cellulose, which has good biological properties such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, hemostasis, mucosal adsorption, non-toxicity, and antibacterial properties. Therefore, hydrogels prepared from chitosan have the advantages of good hydrophilicity, unique three-dimensional network structure, and good biocompatibility, so they have received extensive attention and research in environmental testing, adsorption, medical materials, and catalytic supports. Compared with traditional polymer hydrogels, biomass chitosan-based hydrogels have advantages such as low toxicity, excellent biocompatibility, outstanding processability, and low cost. This paper reviews the preparation of various chitosan-based hydrogels using chitosan as raw material and their applications in the fields of medical materials, environmental detection, catalytic carriers, and adsorption. Some views and prospects are put forward for the future research and development of chitosan-based hydrogels, and it is believed that chitosan-based hydrogels will be able to obtain more valuable applications.

Fabrication of 1,8-naphthalimide modified cellulose derivative composite fluorescent hydrogel probes and their application in the detection of Cr(VI).

The design and development of a rapid and quantitative method for the detection of heavy metal ions is of great importance for environmental protection. We have prepared a 1,8-Naphthalimide modified cellulose composite fluorescent hydrogel (CENAEA/PAA) with a stereo double network structure. Characterized by excellent hydrogel functional structure and fluorescence detection performance, it can efficiently and selectively identify and detect Cr(VI) with linear quenching in the range of 0-400 µmol/L and detection limit of 0.58 µmol/L for Cr(VI). The results show that the CENAEA/PAA can effectively adsorb Cr(VI) with a maximum adsorption capacity of 189.04 mg/g. Finally, the morphological characteristics, chemical structure, fluorescence properties and adsorption behavior of CENAEA/PAA were analyzed and fitted well with the pseudo-second-order model and Freundlich model. Thus, the present work provides a green and sustainable approach for the synthesis of a functional material that can be used for the detection and adsorption of heavy metal ions.