article · ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
Covalent organic frameworks offer useful porous structures, but their conventional powder form and tendency to aggregate limit practical use and reduce active binding sites. To address this, a 3D printing approach transforms these polymers into structured composite scaffolds termed CelloCOFs. These materials combine cellulose nanofibrils, sodium alginate, and specific framework types, effectively preventing nanoparticle agglomeration and preserving porous active sites across micro- and macropore regimes. Laboratory evaluations show that the resulting printed structures capture carbon dioxide at 19.9 milligrams per gram, perfluorooctanesulfonic acid between 7.4 and 34 milligrams per gram, and heavy metals between 118.5 and 410.8 milligrams per gram. The fabricated composite exhibits strong adsorption performance, selectivity, and recyclability, demonstrating a versatile fabrication technique capable of producing custom porous materials for environmental filtration systems.
Porous materials such as covalent organic frameworks hold great promise for capturing environmental pollutants, yet their powder form makes them difficult to deploy at scale. Transforming these fragile powders into robust, recyclable 3D-printed shapes allows engineers to design practical filters. This approach opens up cleaner, structured methods for capturing greenhouse gases and removing persistent toxic chemicals or heavy metals from contaminated water sources.
The composite scaffolds could enable air and water purification technologies, targeted at industrial wastewater operators and carbon capture system manufacturers. The research sits at an applied and tested stage, having demonstrated the formulation of a 3D-printable material and verified its selective adsorption capacity on specific contaminants in bench-scale tests. Commercial deployment would depend on testing durability and efficiency under realistic operational flow rates.
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The development of porous organic polymers, specifically covalent organic frameworks (COFs), has facilitated the advancement of numerous applications. Nevertheless, the limited availability of COFs solely in powder form imposes constraints on their potential applications. Furthermore, it is worth noting that COFs tend to undergo aggregation, leading to a decrease in the number of active sites available within the material. This work presents a comprehensive methodology for the transformation of a COF into three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds using the technique of 3D printing. As part of the 3D printing process, a composite material called CelloCOF was created by combining cellulose nanofibrils (CNF), sodium alginate, and COF materials (i.e., COF-1 and COF-2). The intervention successfully mitigated the agglomeration of the COF nanoparticles, resulting in the creation of abundant active sites that can be effectively utilized for adsorption purposes. The method of 3D printing can be described as a simple and basic procedure that can be adapted to accommodate hierarchical porous materials with distinct micro- and macropore regimes. This technology demonstrates versatility in its use across a range of COF materials. The adsorption capacities of 3D CelloCOF materials were evaluated for three different adsorbates: carbon dioxide (CO2), heavy metal ions, and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS). The results showed that the materials exhibited adsorption capabilities of 19.9, 7.4–34, and 118.5–410.8 mg/g for CO2, PFOS, and heavy metals, respectively. The adsorption properties of the material were found to be outstanding, exhibiting a high degree of recyclability and exceptional selectivity. Based on our research findings, it is conceivable that the utilization of custom-designed composites based on COFs could present new opportunities in the realm of water and air purification.
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DOI: 10.1021/acsami.3c13966
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