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Hierarchically PorousSilsesquioxane-Polyimide Aerogelsfor High-Throughput Separation of Microplastics from Complex WaterMatrices
Summary
Scientists have created a new sponge-like filter that can pull tiny plastic particles out of water quickly and efficiently, catching 95% of microplastics while letting water flow through fast, solving a common problem where filters clog up too soon. This matters because microplastics are increasingly found in our drinking water and have been linked to potential health concerns, so better, longer-lasting filtration tools could help keep our water supplies cleaner and reduce our overall exposure to these pollutants.
Abstract The pervasive accumulation of microplastics (MPs) in aquatic environments poses a severe global threat, yet conventional membrane filtration suffers from rapid membrane fouling and low throughput. In this study, we report the fabrication of a silsesquioxane-cross-linked polyimide (PIOA) aerogel for highly efficient and robust MP remediation. Acting as critical 3D structural nodes, silsesquioxane (SQs) endow the aerogel with a highly interconnected hierarchically porous network and an ultralow, tunable apparent density. The optimized aerogel exhibits an exceptional balance between a high permeate flux (112.6 L m–2 h–1) and a superior retention efficiency (95%) for polystyrene microplastics (PSMPs). Mechanistic investigations reveal that the capture process is fundamentally driven by strong multisite hydrogen bonding and localized electrostatic attractions, which act as robust active chemical anchors. Furthermore, the aerogel demonstrates remarkable environmental resilience across diverse real-world freshwater matrices (86%–90% efficiency) and maintains outstanding continuous operational stability over 10 successive filtration cycles under high-loading conditions without requiring regeneration treatment. This work provides a highly scalable and structurally robust paradigm for designing advanced polymer aerogel filters, opening avenues for sustainable wastewater purification and microplastic pollution mitigation.