Addressing global freshwater scarcity necessitates sustainable desalination technologies. Solar-driven interfacial evaporation presents a promising alternative to energy-intensive conventional methods. This study reports a high-performance, bio-based solar evaporator (CB-NWPF) fabricated from noodle wheat protein foam. Through a process involving starch removal, borate cross-linking, and surface carbonization, the evaporator features longrange vertical channels and hierarchical pores. This unique architecture synergistically promotes rapid capillary water transport, efficient salt reflux. Under one-sun illumination, the CB-NWPF evaporator achieves a high evaporation rate of 3.62 f 0.04 kg center dot m- 2 center dot h- 1 and an exceptional energy efficiency of 95.6 f 1.1%. It demonstrates remarkable long-term stability, outstanding salt resistance, and antibacterial efficacy. This work provides a novel strategy for developing high-performance solar evaporators from biomass resources.

Solar interfacial evaporation holds strong potential for sustainable desalination. Balancing high evaporation rates with long-term salt-fouling resistance remains a major challenge. A carboxymethylated delignified wood (BDCMW) aerogel is fabricated from natural balsa through sequential delignification, carboxymethylation, and borax cross-linking. This process preserves the vertically aligned porous channels while introducing abundant hydrophilic functional groups. The resulting structure provides strong water transport capability and reduces evaporation enthalpy by promoting the formation of intermediate water with weakened hydrogen bonds. Polypyrrole (PPy) is then polymerized in situ on the BDCMW scaffold to produce the BDCMW@PPy composite evaporator. The BDCMW@PPy evaporator achieves an evaporation rate of 4.68 ± 0.08 kg·m-2·h-1 under 1-sun illumination, with an evaporation efficiency of 85 ± 2%. In addition, the evaporator shows strong antibacterial activity and resistance to salt fouling. This work presents a scalable strategy for developing sustainable, highly efficient, and salt-fouling-resistant solar interfacial evaporators.

Flame-retardant lyocell fibers are pivotal to advancing high-performance, cellulose-based textiles, yet existing flame retardants often suffer from poor compatibility with the spinning process and limited efficiency. In this work, we report a molecularly engineered polymeric flame retardant, poly(m-phenyl aminophosphamide) (PPA), for process-compatible integration into lyocell fiber manufacturing. Its terminal ionic groups enable highly stable self-dispersion in the cellulose/NMMO spinning dope through electrostatic repulsion without the need for dispersants. The cross-linked polymeric architecture affords exceptional retention and uniform dispersion within the cellulose matrix, preserving key fiber properties: At 20 wt% loading, the resulting fibers achieve a limiting oxygen index (LOI) of 32.2%, retain LOI >32.0% after 50 laundering cycles, and demonstrate a 49% reduction in peak heat release rate alongside a 50% decrease in total smoke production. Tensile strength reaches 3.6 cN/dtex and moisture regain remains at 9.6%. Mechanistic investigations reveal that PPA releases phosphorus-containing species to quench active radicals in the gas phase, while its decomposition products simultaneously catalyze cellulose dehydration, thereby constructing a highly cross-linked char layer rich in P and N elements. This work offers a scalable, green-compatible strategy for engineering fire-safety polysaccharide-derived fibers without compromising the green advantages of lyocell production.

Addressing global freshwater scarcity necessitates sustainably viable seawater desalination technologies. Solardriven interfacial evaporation (SIE) presents a promising alternative to energy-intensive conventional methods. This study reports a high-performance, bio-based solar evaporator (HASCF@PPy) fabricated from cellulose and alginate fiber. Through blending, high-water-absorption treatment and in-situ polymerization of PPy particles, a solar evaporator with long-range vertical channels and hierarchical pores is fabricated. This unique architecture synergistically promotes rapid capillary water transport and efficient salt reflux. Notably, the HASCF@PPy evaporator achieves an evaporation rate of 2.25 kg center dot m- 2 center dot h- 1 and an energy efficiency of 93.5% under one-sun illumination. It demonstrates remarkable long-term stability and outstanding salt resistance. This work presents a novel approach to developing high-performance solar evaporators from biomass resources.

Advancing multifunctionality in microwave absorbing materials through strategic component selection and architectural tailoring is an emerging research focus. In this work, novel heterostructured composite-silver nanoparticles and silver nanowires anchored on hydrophilic carbon cloth fibers (AgNPs/AgNWs@HCCF) were synthesized via a polyol process coupled with impregnation. The flexible, three-dimensional HCCF scaffold served as a support matrix for the AgNPs and AgNWs, which are known for their outstanding dielectric properties and antibacterial capabilities. By forming heterojunctions, these components were integrated into the carbon cloth framework, enabling simultaneous microwave absorption and antimicrobial activity. The heterojunction interfaces contributed to enhanced electromagnetic attenuation by tuning the balance between conduction and polarization losses and thereby improving impedance matching. Notably, sample S2 achieved a peak reflection loss of −53.19 dB at a thickness of 2.86 mm and offered a broad effective absorption bandwidth of 5.36 GHz at 3.50 mm. In addition, the maximum radar cross-sectional reduction reached 35.21 dB·m2 at 0°. The antibacterial rates against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were 99.40

Biological carbon-based electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorbers have attracted much attention due to their abundant resources and environmental friendliness. However, their impedance mismatch and single attenuation mechanism pose severe challenges to achieving efficient EMW absorption performance. In this work, chitosan/ MIL-88A derived nitrogen-doped carbon/ferroferric oxide/carbon (NC/Fe3O4/C) composite aerogels were prepared by a three-step method of hydrothermal reaction, freeze-drying and high-temperature carbonization. The results revealed that the three-dimensional porous network structure and the rich heterointerfaces were conducive to enhancing interfacial polarization and optimizing impedance matching. Furthermore, the synergistic effect of dielectric loss and magnetic loss enabled the NC/Fe3O4/C composite aerogel with excellent EMW absorption performance at the carbonization temperature of 700 degrees C and a filling ratio of 17 wt%. When the thickness was 2.94 mm, the minimum reflection loss was -70.91 dB. After optimizing the thickness to 2.8 mm, the maximum effective absorption bandwidth could reach 7 GHz, surpassing that of most reported biological carbon-based EMW absorbers. Additionally, the prepared NC/Fe3O4/C composite aerogel also exhibited good thermal insulation property. The research results of radar cross section simulation manifested that the obtained composite aerogels possessed excellent radar wave dissipation capability. This study provides innovative insights, aiming to promote the development of biological carbon-based multifunctional EMW absorbers.

Calcium alginate fiber (CAF) is a bio-based material recognized for its excellent biocompatibility, degradability, and inherent self-flame retardancy, making it a promising candidate for various applications. However, its mechanical and dyeing properties often fall short of expectations. In this work, we produced composite fibers through wet spinning techniques by combining alkali-soluble polyethylene terephthalate (COPET) and sodium alginate (SA). The incorporation of COPET enhanced the stability of the co-spinning solution. The increased rigidity of COPET molecules, with their entanglement and hydrogen bonding with SA molecules, resulted in improved viscosity and modulus in the co-spinning solution, demonstrating a more pronounced shear-thinning behavior. Moreover, the mechanical properties of the composite fibers show a significant improvement, achieving a strength of 5.77 ± 0.48 cN/dtex, representing a 124 % improvement over pure CAF. These composite fibers retained the excellent flame-retardant qualities of CAF (LOI = 35.1 %) while substantially addressing the smoldering. Additionally, attributed to the -SO3 in COPET, the composite fibers exhibited enhanced dyeing properties, achieving 87.62 % dye exhaustion, with a dry rubbing grade elevated to Grade 4 and a wet rubbing grade to Grade 3-4. This research offered a new approach to improving the mechanical and dyeing properties of CAF.

The accelerating global urbanization has led to a growing scarcity of natural sand and gravel resources, making the large-scale application of alternative materials such as manufactured sand and recycled aggregates in concrete an industry consensus. However, these materials often contain certain amounts of clay minerals, which strongly adsorb polycarboxylate superplasticizers (PCEs) and severely impair their dispersing performance. This technical challenge remains inadequately resolved. To address this issue, this study breaks with the conventional approach of using a single polyether macromonomer for PCE synthesis. An innovative combined system of methylallyl polyoxyethylene ether (HPEG) and isopentenyl polyoxyethylene ether (TPEG) is employed as macromonomers to synthesize a conventional PCE (PCE-HT) via aqueous free radical polymerization. On this basis, 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate phosphate (HEMAP) is introduced as a clay-resistant functional monomer to prepare a clay-resistant PCE (PCE-KN). The performance differences between PCE-HT and PCE-KN are compared through tests including cement paste fluidity, zeta potential, adsorption amount, montmorillonite (MMT) interlayer spacing, concrete workability, and mechanical properties, supplemented by microscopic morphological characterization of hydration products. The results demonstrate that incorporating phosphate ester groups through molecular design significantly enhances the performance of PCE in high-clay systems and effectively mitigates the performance degradation caused by clay adsorption.

As a natural fiber, cashmere is favored for its softness, finesse, and warmth. However, its poor flame-retardant properties seriously affect the safety of cashmere. Current flame-retardant treatments for cashmere tend to lead to heavy metal pollution and significantly reduce wearer comfort. In this work, natural and environmentally friendly calcium alginate fibers were blended with cashmere to obtain blended fibers. The blended fibers exhibited good hygroscopicity and softness. The incorporation of calcium alginate fibers enhanced the flame retardancy of the blends, and the LOI of the blended fibers reached 40.2 without smoldering. It was due to a stable CaO protective layer formed by Ca2+ during combustion and the dense carbon layer with the decomposition intermediates of cashmere, which exerted a flame-retardant effect in the condensed phase. This study provided an eco-friendly approach to producing high-quality flame-retardant cashmere products.

Regenerated cellulose fibers are highly flammable, necessitating the application of flame retardants to reduce their fire hazard. In this study, a sulfur-free polymeric flame retardant (PPSPB) was employed to enhance the flame retardancy of viscose fibers (VF), while addressing the smoke release concern associated with commercial organophosphorus flame retardants. PPSPB stayed stability against hydrolysis and agglomeration in water, thereby meeting the strict requirement of viscose spinning. PPSPB presented good compatibility with VF and a low migration tendency from VF, enabling VF to maintain high whiteness, superior moisture absorption, good mechanical properties, and exceptional washing fastness. VF/PPSPB20, containing 20 wt% PPSPB, achieved a limiting oxygen value of 29.5 % and presented a sharp reduction in the heat release with a moderate smoke release in cone calorimetry tests. PPSPB showed dominant condensed-phase flame-retardant mechanisms via promoting cellulose dehydration and enhancing char formation. It also presented vapor-phase flame-retardant activities through facilitating the generation of nonflammable gaseous products. This work opens a feasible approach for producing flame-retardant regenerated cellulose fibers using polymeric flame retardants.

The combination of hydrogels and fabrics opens up significant opportunities for flexible materials, particularly in biomedicine and wearable technology. However, the weak interface caused by insufficient interactions between the different phases and the substantial modulus mismatch limit their broader application. In this research, flexible and amorphous polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogels were integrated with polar and elastic fabrics to create multifunctional composites via in-situ freeze-thawing technology. First, by incorporating antifreeze inorganic salts into the precursor solution, we effectively suppressed ice crystal growth during the cooling process, promoting a uniform and loosely aligned PVA chain structure. This led to the formation of an amorphous crosslinked network while simultaneously releasing free hydroxyl groups. These hydroxyl groups facilitate the formation of robust interfaces within the composite. In addition, an elastic fabric composed of a polyester-polyurethane fiber blend was selected. The polyester fibers, rich in carbonyl groups along their polymer chains, form strong hydrogen bonds with the free hydroxyl groups from the PVA hydrogel, creating a highly resilient interface. The polyurethane fibers contribute to a lower Young's modulus, as well as excellent elasticity and ductility, reducing the fabric's inherent stiffness and mitigating fiber pull-out failure. Further, the incorporation of CaCl2 not only created an environment rich in free ions, but also provided the amorphous structure with increasing spacing between adjacent polymer chains, facilitating the transportation of ions. Therefore, the composite exhibits adept sensing capabilities for intricate human body movements, fostering auspicious prospects in smart sensor applications.

Flame-retardant Modal fabrics were prepared by blending Modal fibers with calcium alginate fibers, which have intrinsic flame retardancy, and the preparation process of flame-retardant samples is diametrically eco-friendly. Despite alginate fibers being low in thermal stability, the char-forming ability of Modal/alginate samples was given greater value in a higher temperature range without changing the degradation process of Modal fibers. Modal50/alginate50 obtained 23.0

Chitosan (CS) has been used to form flame-retardant coatings containing clays and nanoparticles. However, further improving the flame-retardant efficiency of the system remains a challenge. In this work, we developed a type of polyelectrolyte complex coating (PCM) using H3PO3 protonated CS and montmorillonite for highly efficient flame retardation of polyester-cotton fabrics. The surface morphologies, chemical structure, flame retardancy, burning behavior, thermal decomposition behavior, laundering durability, mechanical properties, and hand assessment of the coating and coated fabrics were investigated. The PCM coatings were built on the fabric surface by blading coating, in which H3PO3 presented in the form of salts via ionic interactions with CS. With 13 wt% add-ons of the PCM, the coated fabrics (PCM-13) presented a limiting oxygen value reaching 64.3 %, and easily self-extinguished in the vertical flammability test. In the cone calorimetry test, PCM-13 presented reductions in peak heat release rate, total heat release, and total smoke production of 49 %, 65 %, and 59 %, respectively. PCM-13 exhibited good laundering durability and maintained superior flame retardancy even after 50 washing cycles. We found that PCM coatings showed both condensed and gaseous flame-retardant activity. PCM-13 had good mechanical properties but became more inflexible than the untreated fabrics. This study may offer possibilities for modifying CS via ionic bonds for functional polyelectrolyte complex coatings.

The application of traditional cellulosic paper is limited because of its flammability, so it is necessary to explore new materials that can be used in the field of flame-retardant paper. Based on the synergistic effect between fibers, flame-retardant lyocell (FRL) and calcium alginate (FRL/Ca-Alg) composite paper is prepared by a simple but efficient method. The thermal degradation process of the composite paper is analyzed by thermogravimetric (TG) and TG analysis coupled with Fourier transform infrared, the flame retardancy of the composite paper is analyzed by vertical flammability (VF) tests, limiting oxygen index test and cone calorimetry test, and the morphology of the residue after VF tests is observed by scanning electron microscopy. It is found that, the Ca-Alg releases a large amount of CO2 before ignited, which delayed the ignited time of the composite paper; FRL reduces the effective combustion heat of composite paper during combustion, and the compact char formed by FRL effectively inhibits the smoldering of Ca-Alg in the end stage of combustion. Based on these, the synergistic flame-retardant effect of composite paper is proposed.

Sol-gel coatings have long been applied to improve the flame retardancy of fabrics, but they often exhibit unsatisfactory flame-retardant efficiency for polyester/cotton blended fabrics. Therefore, an intumescent coating called DAM was constructed in this work by modifying 3-aminopropyl triethoxysilane with amino phosphonates and melamine through neutralizition reaction of the ingredients. Then, DAM was deposited on the surface of the fabric as a homogeneous coating via sol-gel technique. It was found that DAM accelerated the dehydration of cotton at a relatively low temperature but did not influence the thermal decomposition of polyester. With DAM add-ons of 8% and 15%, the coated fabrics severally named DAM-8 and DAM-15, self-extinguished in horizontal and vertical flame tests, with liming oxygen index values of 23.0% and 26.0%, respectively. In the cone calorimetry test, the ignition of the fabric was slightly delayed owing to the presence of the DAM, while the total heat release and peak heat release rate of the DAM-15 were reduced by 26.1% and 46.3%, respectively. DAM showed flame-retardant activities in both condensed and gaseous phases. Hand assessment of the fabric via the PhabrOmeter system suggested that the presence of the DAM caused the coated fabric to be smoother but a little more rigid than the uncoated fabric.

Inorganic-organic hybrid coatings prepared via an impregnation assembly of eco-friendly materials exhibited dramatically flame-retardant properties on flexible polyurethane foam (FPUF). A nickel-complex of tea polyphenols (TP-Ni) was synthesized, and TP-Ni and laponite (LAP) were coated on the surface of FPUF. LAP/TP-Ni can be homogeneously dispersed on the surface of FPUF. Moreover, the melt-dripping phenomenon of 1LAP/4TP-Ni/FPUF was completely inhibited during the vertical flame test (UL-94) with 41.2 wt% weight gain, and it showed self-extinguished behaviors at once and passed the UL-94 V-0 rating. Additionally, the values of peak heat release rate and peak smoke production rate of 1LAP/4TP-Ni/FPUF were reduced by 71.6% and 60.9%, compared with the control. The content of gaseous toxic substances, such as CO and NCO-containing compounds, was also decreased, indicating the effect of TP-Ni/LAP on the toxicity suppression of flame-retardant FPUF. Encouragingly, the coatings deteriorated the tensile property of FPUF inconspicuously. Interestingly, the coatings do not contain traditional flame retardant elements, which offers an innovative approach for designing flame retardants. Thus, these inorganic-organic hybrid coatings show the promising potential to decrease the fire risk of FPUF.

Polyester fibers are often applied as filling materials; however, they are flammable and exhibit meltdripping. In this work, to prepare fibers with high flame retardancy, inherently flame-retardant alginate fibers were blended with polyester fibers, without using any toxic chemicals. The blended fibers with 20 wt.% alginate fibers achieved quick self-extinguishing without any melt-dripping in the vertical flame test and a test according to Pennsylvania Stuffed Toy Regulations. During the cone calorimetry test, the blended materials with 50 wt.% alginate fibers showed a remarkable decrease in heat and smoke release, compared with the blend with 20 wt.% alginate fiber and polyester fibers. Moreover, the alginate fibers could decompose prematurely and then delay the weight loss of polyester components when the natural/synthetic blends were subjected to heating. Also, they exhibited flame-retardant activities both in the vapor phase by the fuel dilution of non-flammable gases and in the condensed phase by forming calcium-enriched residues that were incompatible with polyester melts. Given their ease of preparation and high flame retardancy, the blended fibers have the potential for applications as filling materials of children's toys, furniture, and clothing. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The influence of the weaving method on the flame retardancy of the fabrics prepared cannot be ignored. In this work, the thermal stability, flame retardancy, flame-retardant mechanism, mechanical properties and water absorption of cotton/alginate blended knitted fabrics were investigated. Thermogravimetric analysis results showed that the char residues at 700 °C of cotton/alginate blended knitted fabrics increased both in N2 and air. In the cone calorimetry test, compared with cotton knitted fabrics, the fire growth rate index of cotton5/alginate5 decreased from 2.63 to 1.40 kW m−2 s. Thermogravimetric analysis coupled with Fourier transform infrared analysis indicated that the cotton/alginate blended knitted fabrics released more non-flammable gases and fewer inflammable products containing carbonyl and ether groups. Analysis of Raman spectra showed that the char residues of cotton5/alginate5 had a higher degree of graphitization. The analysis of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy spectra proved the existence of CaCO3 and CaO in the char residues. Moreover, the introduction of alginate fibers improved the water absorption and water retention properties of cotton knitted fabrics, but reduced its mechanical properties.

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fabrics are used almost everywhere in daily life. However, they burn with melting and dripping, causing potential dangers. This work aims to solve the melt-dripping phenomenon and improve the flame retardancy of PET fabrics. Through a rapid dip-coating process, the chemically reactive product of phytic acid and (3-piperazinylpropyl)methyldimethoxysilane, denoted as GPA, was used to prepare a flame-retardant coating for PET fabrics. The results of the scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive spectrometry show that GPA is evenly distributed on the PET fabrics. From the thermogravimetric analysis in air atmosphere, the residual chars of flame-retardant PET (FR-PET) fabrics at a higher temperature zone increase significantly. The melt-dripping is eliminated in the vertical flaming test. Besides, the limiting oxygen index values of FR-PET fabrics are improved. In the microscale combustion calorimetry test, the peak heat release rates (PHRR) of FR-PET fabrics are effectively reduced. In the cone calorimetry test, the PHRR and total heat release of FR-PET fabrics are also reduced. The results of the thermogravimetric analysis coupled with Fourier transform infrared analysis show that FR-PET fabrics release fewer combustible products during the thermal decomposition process. In the tensile strength test, the warp tensions of FR-PET are enhanced. This work demonstrates the flame-retardant effectiveness of GPA on PET fabrics in detail.

Ammonium phytate and chitosan were chosen as eco-friendly flame retardants to improve the flame retardancy and antibacterial properties of viscose fabrics. The flame-retardant viscose fabrics exhibited sharp improvements in thermal stability at the higher temperature zone, and 2BLviscose retained 39.0% char residues at 700 degrees C. 2BL/viscose obtained a limiting oxygen index value of 29% and self-extinguished in the vertical flame test. The fire behaviors of the flame-retardant viscose fabrics were also enhanced; even the addition of CS decreased the total smoke production value from 0.6 to 0.3 m(2). Flame-retardant viscose fabrics released less flammable substances and more H2O, resulting in combustion choking. Meanwhile, the flame-retardant samples formed stable char residues, which were mainly constituted by graphite. Meanwhile, the viscose fabrics coated with CS/AP exhibited excellent antimicrobial properties, and 2BL/viscose obtained a 99.99% antibacterial rate for both Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coli (E. coli).