This study aims to explore the preparation of a kind of Mn-TiO2 (MT) composite materials and their application in the photocatalytic degradation of ciprofloxacin. The MT composite material was synthesized using the sol-gel method coupled with sulfuric acid activation for homogeneous synthesis. The effects of manganese doping concentration and calcination temperature on the material's structure and photocatalytic performance were systematically investigated. Characterization of the material was conducted using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy (UV-vis). The results indicated that when the manganese acetate doping concentration ranged from 2 % to 4 % and the calcination temperature was set as 450 degrees C, the photocatalytic activity of the MT composite material was significantly enhanced. The catalyst's efficiency in degrading ciprofloxacin under UV-visible light was evaluated, demonstrating that the degradation rate of ciprofloxacin(10 mg/L) by the MT composite could exceed 98 % within 150 min, which is 1.9 times greater than that of pristine TiO2. The enhanced performance can be attributed to the smaller grain size, reduced band gap width, and exposure of high-energy crystal planes, all of which improve the absorption of UV-visible light and the reactivity of the catalyst. This study may provide practical guidance for the development of efficient visible-light-responsive photocatalysts and their applications in the field of wastewater treatment.

By employing halloysite (Hal) as the carrier, a synergistic cetylpyridinium (CP+)/Cu2+/Hal (PCH) system was constructed via a vacuum loading method. Hal's lumen serves as a storage "container" for CP+ and Cu2+, achieving their optimized thermal stability and "burst + sustained" release. Antibacterial agents' loading makes PCH tend to hydrophobicity and exhibit synergistic antibacterial efficacy. With the released antibacterial agents and adsorbed PCH particles, 100 % of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli are inactivated by PCH in 120 min at concentrations of 20 mg/L and 150 mg/L, respectively. The effect of Hal's tubular structure on PCH's performance shows that the shortening of Hal's nanotube and the expansion of lumen diameter with the preservation of intact tubular structure can intensify the loading-release and antibacterial process of CP+ and Cu2+. However, it requires balancing the demands of rapid bactericidal and durable antibacterial activity. The obtained PCH is well dispersed and compatible with thermoplastic polyurethane, enhancing its mechanical properties. The composite film containing 10 wt% PCH inactivates 100 % Staphylococcus aureus and 98.5 % Escherichia coli in 4 h, while exhibiting excellent elongation at break (274.3 %) and tensile strength (40.7 MPa). Therefore, the developed PCH holds promise for manufacturing antibacterial functional products to combat bacterial infections.

The migration of free antibacterial agents in the coating will lead to the rapid decline of the antibacterial effect. Consequently, achieving sustained antibacterial efficacy has become a critical focus currently. In this study, through liquid-phase ion exchange and dry modification, Cu2+ and cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC) were successively loaded onto stellerite (STI) to synthesize Cu2+/STI and Cu2+/CTAC/STI composites, then Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) was used as the matrix to construct Cu2+/CTAC/STI/PVA antimicrobial coatings. The results demonstrated that the modified material retained the crystal structure of stellerite while achieving superior antibacterial properties. The incorporation of stellerite not only enhanced the stability of the antibacterial agent but also facilitated its unique delivery function. Specifically, stellerite served as an effective reservoir for antibacterial components, enabling efficient sterilization through the synergistic release of CTAC and Cu2+ coupled with bacterial adsorption. In addition, Cu2+/CTAC/STI/PVA coating exhibited excellent bacterial efficacy and long-lasting antimicrobial performance, indicating the promising application prospects of stelleritebased antibacterial composites in functional coating fields.

Alkali dissolution is an effective method to regulate the pore structure of porous mineral material. The main chemical composition of diatomite is amorphous SiO2, which can be dissolved in alkali dissolution. The diatomite samples with alkali dissolution treatment were systematacially characterized by the particle size analysis, low temperature nitrogen adsorption, MIP, fractal theory, SEM, TEM, XRD, FTIR and surface hydroxyl density to analyze the pore structure and surface properties. And the humidity control performance of diatomite was tested under different temperatures and relative humidities. The relationship among pore structure, surface properties and humidity control performance were analyzed. The results show that alkali dissolution can regulate the mesoporous and macroporous of diatomite, and some new microporous can generate at high alkali dosage. The specific surface area, mesoporous pore volume, proportion of macroporous volume, surface roughness, heterogeneity of pore structure and number of hydroxyl groups on the surface of diatomite are important factors which determining the humidity control performance. The humidity control performance of diatomite is positively correlated with the specific surface area, mesoporous volume, surface roughness, heterogeneity of pore structure and number of hydroxyl groups on the surface, while is negatively correlated with the proportion of macroporous volume.

The severity of environmental pollution poses a serious threat to human health, and especially organic pollution is more complex and difficult to treat compared to heavy metal pollution. Nowadays, the persulfate-based advanced oxidation processes receive more and more attention due to high efficiency, strong controllability, easy operation, and economic competitiveness, which is generally employed for the efficient degradation of organic contaminants. Natural minerals possess the characteristics of low-cost, easy availability, environmental friendliness, non-toxic, special structural effects, etc., which have played a critical role and could be the promising alternative to traditional catalysts for persulfate activation. First, this review retrospects the research status of natural minerals and mineral-based catalysts for persulfate activation to degrade organic contaminants, i.e., pyrite, mackinawite, copper sulfide, kaolinite, and montmorillonite. Then, the mechanisms of persulfate activation by natural minerals and mineral-based catalysts to generate the reactive oxygen species including SO4 center dot  , center dot OH, center dot O2 , 1O2, and surface reactive complex for contaminants degradation are systematically summarized. Finally, we discussed the further application of natural minerals in activating persulfate as well as the future research frontiers for practical environmental remediation, i.e., the synthesis and characterization of mineralbased catalysts dominated by non-radical pathway, the large-scale application of PDS with low-cost, the surface modification of mineral-based catalysts with amphiphilicity, as well as the more efficient catalysts possessing nano-restricted domain catalytic effect. The development and expansion of novel and efficient mineralbased catalysts with enhanced synergistic effects would provide new opportunities for persulfate activation in environmental remediation.

Seeking non-antibiotic solutions against bacterial infections has become a global priority. Therefore, this work employs sepiolite as the carrier to load cetylpyridinium (CP+) and Cu2+, constructing a CP+/Cu2+/sepiolite (PCS) system with excellent antibacterial and application properties. Sepiolite, serving as a micro-container for storing antibacterial agents, enhances their thermal stability and realizes their "burst + sustained" release. Antibacterial agents improve the organic compatibility of sepiolite and provide a synergistic antibacterial effect. With the released antibacterial agents and contact inactivation effect, PCS at 10 mg/L and 75 mg/L achieve 100 % inactivation of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli within 120 min, respectively. Furthermore, the sepiolite carrier with an intact fibrous structure facilitates the loading-release and antibacterial activity of agents in PCS. The obtained PCS disperses uniformly in thermoplastic polyurethane and binds tightly with it, improving its mechanical properties. Film of ST-10wt%PCS with 10 wt% PCS inactivates 100 % of Staphylococcus aureus and 93.0 % of Escherichia coli in 4 h, while exhibiting superior elongation at break (263 %) and tensile strength (35 MPa) compared to the pure film (242 % and 30 MPa). Thus, it is evident that the resulting PCS holds promise for the direct use or manufacture of functional products to combat bacterial infections.

Highly ordered hexagonal mesoporous silica was successfully synthesized from natural Opoka minerals, and an all-atom model of MCM-41 was constructed by simulation. The samples were characterized by XRD, N2 adsorption, FE-SEM, TEM and FT-IR, and its water vapor adsorption/desorption performance were also evaluated. The structural rationality of MCM-41 model was verified by XRD, Connolly volume, and radial distribution function. The adsorption behavior of water molecules on MCM-41 model was simulated by Monte Carlo method, and the adsorption mechanism was discussed at the micro level. Results showed that the synthesized MCM-41 possessed a large surface area of 988 m2/g and pore volume of 1.02 cm3/g, and an average pore diameter of 4.1 nm. The moisture adsorption/desorption content of MCM-41 can be as high as 82 % and 67 %, respectively, with a high adsorption/desorption rate. The simulation results show that the adsorption sites of water molecules on MCM-41 are mainly concentrated on the silanol groups and skeleton defects of the pore surface. With the increase of pressure, the adsorption of water molecules on the surface of MCM-41 pores changes from mono-layer to multi-layer. Meanwhile, microdroplets are formed due to hydrogen bonding, and further capillary condensation occurs in the pores.

By intercalating montmorillonite (MMT) with Cu2+ and benzalkonium chloride (BAC), the present work constructed a synergistic promotion system (Cu2+/BAC/MMT). MMT not only enhances the thermal stability of Cu2+ and BAC but also facilitates the controlled release of Cu2+ and BAC. Concurrently, the introduction of BAC improves the material's organic compatibility. In vitro assays show that the "MIC+" of Cu2+/BAC/MMT against Staphylococcus aureus is merely 7.32 mg/L and 55.56 mg/L against Escherichia coli. At concentrations of 10 and 25 mg/L, Cu2+/BAC/MMT inactivates 100% of S. aureus and E. coli within 2 h, respectively. Furthermore, it is confirmed that the prepared Cu2+/BAC/MMT exhibits a long-term antibacterial ability through antibacterial experiments and release tests. Also, the biosafety of this material was also substantiated by in vitro cytotoxicity tests. These comprehensive findings indisputably portend that Cu2+/BAC/MMT holds promise to supplant antibiotics as an efficacious treatment modality for bacterial infections.

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is one of the culprits responsible for hazardous wound infections and food contamination, and unrestrained antibiotic use has led to its widespread drug resistance. To tackle this issue, kaolinite (KAO) was modified with benzalkonium chloride (BAC) by a dry modification process to produce a material (BAC/KAO) that exhibits "rapid + persistent" bactericidal ability, coupled with organic compatibility. A "win-win" system between BAC and KAO was designed so that KAO increases BAC's thermal stability while ensuring a proper release of BAC through an appropriate binding force. The modification of BAC provides KAO with antibacterial efficacy and enhances its organic compatibility. BAC/KAO has a minimum inhibitory concentration of 23.44 mg/L and an antibacterial rate of 92.61% against S. aureus. BAC/KAO is advantageous as it can rapidly kill over 60% of bacteria within the first 10 min and continue to inactivate the remaining bacteria, making it more desirable for practical applications. During the antibacterial process, both the released and unreleased BAC can inactivate S. aureus by interacting with its surface. Meanwhile, in vitro cytotoxicity assays confirm the potential of BAC/KAO for safe application. Furthermore, 30 wt% of doped BAC/KAO remains evenly dispersed in the poly(vinyl alcohol) film, resulting in an 11.295 mm inhibition zone. Therefore, BAC/KAO exhibits excellent promise as an alternative to antibiotics and for manufacturing antibacterial films for food packaging and wound dressings to combat S. aureus infection.

In today’s world of antibiotic abuse and bacterial resistance, it is urgent to propose a non-antibiotic solution against bacterial wound infections. Hence, the present work prepared kaolinite (KAO)-based organic antibacterial material (CA/KAO) modified with chlorhexidine acetate (CA) via a dry process. And the potential of CA/KAO in the doping preparation of antibacterial wound dressings was evaluated with poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) as an organic matrix. The results demonstrated that a synergistic promotion system between CA and kaolinite was formed. Kaolinite optimized the thermal stability of CA and controlled it to achieve a demand-oriented release mode of “burst + slow” release. CA was mainly attached to the surface of kaolinite by hydrogen bonding to impart its antibacterial properties and enhanced organic compatibility. For Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), which is prone to induce wound infections, CA/KAO showed a low-level MIC of 11.72 mg/L and achieved a 98.37% antibacterial rate by contact inactivation and released CA sterilization. CA/KAO was homogeneously dispersed in PVA film and achieved inhibition zones of 15.393 mm and 12.663 mm against S. aureus and Escherichia coli (E. coli), respectively, at 30 wt% doping. It is expected that CA/KAO would be an option for the mass production of antibacterial wound dressings.

The comparative study on the regulation of diversified crystal forms of ferric hydroxide for peroxymonosulfate activation is of great significance, especially for the transformation of crystals in the presence of other substances or components. Advanced characterizations like XAS and coexisting growth with kaolinite would be expected to illustrate the issues and provide more possibilities for environmental purification. Herein, this study demonstrated the collaborative preparation of different crystallized x-FeOOH (x = & alpha;, 8, and & gamma;) purebreds and kaolinitebased composites (x-F/K) (x = & alpha;', 8, and & gamma;) under hydrothermal conditions or natural oxidation by adjusting types of reducing agent in the reaction. The & alpha;'-F/K composite exhibits the largest specific surface area in comparison with other samples. Besides, the differences in pore structure and coordination environment caused by discrepant crystal forms, and preferential orientation crystallization evolution after kaolinite introduction have been proved to significantly influence the adsorption and catalysis performance of FeOOH. The present work could be beneficial for revealing the intrinsic adsorption-catalysis features of x-F/K and other similar natural oxides with multiple crystal forms.Synopsis: Facilitating future applications of kaolinite-based catalysts for peroxymonosulfate activation by mineral oriented induction and crystal .

The enormous energy consumption of space cooling exacerbates the global energy crisis and the environmental governance burden, in which the latent cooling load for dehumidification wastes a notable percentage (similar to 40%) of the electricity available for cooling. But encouragingly, moisture-absorbing metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) coated heat exchangers in air conditioners can decouple and remove latent loads from sensible loads through adsorptive dehumidification. Given the favorable outlook, the present work performs a detailed analysis of the water adsorption of MOFs and emphasizes their optimization techniques to meet the requirements of dehumidifying coating applications. The promising manufacturing techniques of MOF-coated heat exchangers (MCHEs) were reviewed, and a preliminary framework for the selection of MOFs and coating methods was also constructed. After that, the advantageous dehumidification and latent load handling performance of MCHEs and their performance variations under different factors were summarized to guide the optimized applications. Finally, the energy-efficient dehumidification and cooling effects of MCHE-based air conditioners were demonstrated, and strategies for breaking through the limitations and further development were proposed. This timely review motivates readers to design MOFs for dehumidifying coatings and thus develop MCHE-based air conditioners to tackle the environmental pressures stemming from escalating global energy consumption.

The catalytic membrane, which combines the physical barrier and peroxymonosulfate (PMS)/visible light (Vis)induced catalytic oxidation functionalities while minimizing biofouling, exhibits great promise as a material for the removal of persistent organic pollutants from wastewater. In this study, three catalytic membranes composed of 2D/2D hybrid g-C3N4/kaolinite with nitrogen vacancies and modified with different iron species (& gamma;-FeOOH nanosheets, Fe2O3 quantum dots, and Fe single atoms) were prepared via vacuum filtration. Evaluation of the catalytic performance demonstrated that & gamma;-FeOOH nanosheets-modified sample exhibited a relatively higher water flux (258.13 L m-2 h-1). In contrast, Fe single atom-modified sample achieved improved bisphenol A removal efficiency (97.39%) under the PMS/Vis synergetic system. Interestingly, the Fe2O3 quantum dotsmodified sample exhibited the highest rate constant based on the retention time. Furthermore, the Fe single atom-modified sample showed consistent removal of bisphenol A, reaching nearly 100% during continuous-flow operation for 180 min, while maintaining a flux of approximately 200 L m-2 h-1. Quenching experiments suggested that & BULL;O2 , 1O2, and h+ were the most important oxidizing species involved in the reaction of the three membranes. Statistical analysis indicated that variations in the average pore size of the membranes were key factors influencing the catalytic activity. Overall, this study offers an in-depth insight into the systematic and quantitative assessment of 2D/2D hybrid g-C3N4/layered clay-based catalytic membranes for wastewater treatment.

This study evaluated the adsorption of five volatile organic compounds (VOCs) on Opoka, precipitated silica, and palygorskite, to elucidate the effect of their pore size on VOCs adsorption. The adsorption capacity of these adsorbents is not only highly correlated with their surface area and pore volume, but also notably improved by the presence of micropores. The variation in adsorption capacity for different VOCs was primarily influenced by their boiling point and polarity. Palygorskite, which had the smallest total pore volume (0.357 cm3/g) but the largest micropore volume (0.043 cm3/g) among the three adsorbents, exhibited the highest adsorption capacity for all tested VOCs. Additionally, the study constructed slit pore models of palygorskite with micropores (0.5 and 1.5 nm) and mesopores (3.0 and 6.0 nm), calculated and discussed the heat of adsorption, concentration distribution, and interaction energy of VOCs adsorbed on different pore models. The results revealed that the adsorption heat, concentration distribution, total interaction energy, and van der Waals energy decrease with increasing pore size. The concentration of VOCs in 0.5 nm pore was nearly three times that in 6.0 nm pore. This work can also provide guidance for further research on using adsorbents with mixed microporous and mesoporous structures to control VOCs.

采用羟基硅油干法表面改性硅酸钙,研究表面改性对硅酸钙活化指数、吸油值的影响.利用傅里叶变化红外吸收光谱仪(FTlR)、热重分析仪(TG)表征探究硅酸钙改性机理,结果表明:2％羟基硅油对硅酸钙的改性效果良好,活化指数接近100％,吸油值降低50％以上.FTlR结果表明,改性硅酸钙在795 cm-1、1258 cm-1和2955 cm-1处产生与羟基硅油相同的C-H吸收峰,说明改性剂成功包覆于硅酸钙表面.进一步将改性硅酸钙填充聚丙烯(PP)制备复合材料,研究填充量和形貌对复合材料力学性能的影响,结果表明:改性硅酸钙/PP复合材料的力学性能优于未改性硅酸钙/PP复合材料;通过力学性能和SEM对比可知,片状硅酸钙与PP的相容性更好,在较高填充量下复合材料的力学性能更优.

Optimizing electron transfer channels and sufficiently exposing active sites to trigger an efficient Fenton-like reaction are vital for manipulating catalytic properties of water treatment. Herein, Fe2O3 quantum dots were prepared and integrated with composites of g-C3N4 and kaolinite with nitrogen (N) vacancies (FONGK-10) for bisphenol A (BPA) removal in a peroxymonosulfate (PMS)/visible light (Vis) system. X-ray absorption near-edge structures and extended X-ray absorption fine structures demonstrated interface's combined properties. In particular, the tight interfacial contact and introduction of N vacancies resulted in the formation of effective electron channels, which caused more effective separation of electron-hole pairs and an extended response time of 1.5 × 10-4 s. Furthermore, the introduction of kaolinite reduced the Fe2O3 particle size and accelerated PMS consumption. The k value in FONGK-10/PMS/Vis system was 4.5 times that of the FONGK-10/PMS and 27.5 times that of the FONGK-10/Vis system, and the synergetic system exhibited superior consecutive catalytic performance in a fluidized-bed catalytic unit, degrading ~100% of BPA in 200 min. The exposed electron channels significantly maintained the Fe(III)/Fe(II) stable dynamic cycle, thereby enhancing the activation of PMS and photocatalysis performance.