Peiyong Qin

With low carbon footprint and reduced secondary pollution, membrane technique offers an energy‐saving separation process while end‐of‐life disposal practices of polymer membranes remain an issue. Herein, a light‐triggered dynamic polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) network design, that enabled a closed‐loop recyclable separation membrane with superior pervaporation performance, is proposed. Such a dynamic network is constructed through [4 + 4] photodimerization of anthracene grafted PDMS under 365‐nm UV light, while 254‐nm UV light transforms the crosslinked membranes into linear polymers. The facile deconstruction process is completed within 35 min at ambient temperature, and recycling test demonstrates efficient reconstruction of PDMS networks with 92.6% conversion of anthracene groups within 10 min. The membrane exhibits a superior ethanol recovery performance with a pervaporation separation index of 13,285, surpassing the reported state‐of‐the‐art PDMS‐based membranes. The recycled membrane retains efficient ethanol recovery even after five solid‐liquid conversion cycles with minor deviations in flux and separation factor compared to the original membrane. Such a dynamic network also demonstrates an efficient self‐healing capability with retained pervaporation performance toward minor defects. The design principle of closed‐loop chemically recyclable separation membranes with retained and superior functionality provides a scalable membrane technique adaptable to diverse separation applications.

In the dairy industry, efficient separation of casein (CN) and whey protein is crucial for products like infant formula and sports nutrition. Membrane separation technology, particularly ceramic membranes, offers advantages including high temperature resistance, mechanical strength, and chemical stability. Surface wettability, as a key interfacial parameter, directly reflects membrane-protein interactions and influences flux, separation efficiency, and fouling. In-depth exploration of the intrinsic connection between the surface wettability of ceramic membrane and the separation effect of proteins is conducive to the precise control of the protein separation process, effectively reducing the risk of membrane fouling, increasing membrane flux, and thereby significantly improving the efficiency of protein separation. This work systematically investigates the effects of membrane pore size, operating pressure, and temperature process parameters on the separation effect and membrane flux of CN and whey protein, and combines surface wettability for mechanism analysis to reveal the migration rules and separation mechanisms of protein molecules on ceramic membrane surface. The results will provide theoretical basis and technical support for the practical application of ceramic membrane technology in the dairy industry, promoting the green and intelligent development of dairy product processing technology.

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is extensively utilized for the recovery of bio‐alcohols, but it encounters significant obstacles in volatile organic compounds (VOCs) removal, because of the narrow size for molecules diffusion. In this work, we designed a high‐efficiency diffusion channel by introducing phenyl as a spacer into PDMS chains. The monomer divinylbenzene and vinyl‐terminated PDMS (vinyl‐PDMS) can be chemically crosslinked with thiol‐grafted PDMS (thiol‐PDMS) based on thiol‐ene click reaction. The result shows that the free volume radius (r₃, r₄) has a significant increase after the introduction of divinylbenzene as a spacer, which is beneficial to the transport of phenol diffusion. After a series of optimizations involving the divinylbenzene content, pervaporation (PV) operating temperature, photoinitiator content, and viscosity of vinyl‐PDMS, the prepared phenyl‐PDMS showed an excellent PV performance for phenol recovery containing 10.9 of separation factor and 3959.66 g m⁻² h⁻¹ of flux as separating 0.1 wt% of phenol/water solution at 70°C. This separation performance is significantly higher than the unmodified PDMS membrane, that is, 2.05 times higher in separation factor and 3.54 times higher in flux. This study provides an effective structure design for the removal of aromatic compounds by enlarging diffusion channels and will make a great contribution to biological medicine and bioengineering.

The valorisation of biomass derivatives into fine chemicals through the combination of electro-enzymatic catalysis under green chemistry principles holds promising potential. However, bottlenecks, including poor electron transfer efficiency between the electrode surface and electron mediators, inefficient cofactor regeneration, and the high cost of enzymes and electron mediators, continue to hinder practical applications. Herein, to address the abovementioned technical barriers, we proposed an electron mediator-free bioelectrocatalytic system that integrated electrochemical NADH regeneration and enzymatic reactions. The proposed system was based on a novel, orderly assembled composite bioelectrode composed of a conjugated structure of covalent organic frameworks (COFs, namely, TpBD), which encapsulated cofactor-dependent oxidoreductases. The as-prepared composite bioelectrode was further applied to the highly selective hydrogenation of furfural to furfuryl alcohol. Results indicated that the electron pathway involved in the TpBD conjugated structure guaranteed effective cofactor regeneration on the composite bioelectrode without the assistance of costly electron mediators, thereby promoting the enzymatic reduction of furfural. A high furfural conversion of 98.94% was realized, accompanied by remarkable furfuryl alcohol selectivity of 90.13% at −1.4 V (vs. Ag/AgCl). The novel composite bioelectrode also showed good stability and reusability. Up to 88.1% of the original furfuryl alcohol selectivity was preserved after 10 cycles of recycling. This work presents a promising green alternative route for the valorisation of furfural, with great potential for extending to the valorization of other renewable biomass derivatives.

This study introduces a photo-enzyme catalysis system for efficient DFF-to-FDCA conversion under mild conditions, achieving 84.14 ± 4.68% yield, with high selectivity and improved H₂O₂ handling.

Polyimide (PI) membranes have shown great advantages in gas separation due to their excellent thermal and chemical stability as well as high separation performance.

Urea (CO(NH₂)₂) is the main component of nitrogen‐based fertilizers and is widely used in various industries. Until now, urea production is conducted under high‐temperature and high‐pressure conditions, which involves a considerable carbon footprint. Urea electrosynthesis, which is powered by renewable energy‐derived electricity, has emerged as a sustainable single‐step process for urea production. The development of efficient and stable catalysts is the key to improving the efficiency of urea electrosynthesis. In this review, we summarized the research progress and applications of catalysts with atomic‐scale reactive sites in urea electrosynthesis. First, the catalytic mechanisms of urea electrosynthesis from CO₂ and various nitrogenous molecules are discussed. Then, typical electrocatalysts such as single‐atom electrocatalysts, dual‐atom electrocatalysts, clusters, atomic dopants, vacancies, and so forth, are discussed. Furthermore, characterization methods for atomic‐scale reactive sites are summarized. Finally, challenges and suggestions for urea electrosynthesis are proposed. We hope this review can provide some inspiration toward the development of catalysts for efficient and sustainable urea electrosynthesis.