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Polymer Films/Membranes: Structure, Properties, and Applications
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Polymer Films/Membranes: Structure, Properties, and Applications

A special issue of Coatings (ISSN 2079-6412). This special issue belongs to the section "Functional Polymer Coatings and Films".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2024 | Viewed by 12161

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Xin Tong

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092, China
Interests: polymeric membranes; water treatment; membrane preparation; membrane characterization; nanofiltration; reverse osmosis; reverse electrodialysis; forward osmosis.
Prof. Dr. Runlong Hao

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, North China Electric Power University (Baoding), Baoding, China
Interests: polymeric membranes; wastewater treatment; advanced oxidation process; organic compound degradation; electrical conductive membrane

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Membrane technology has been widely applied in water, energy, and environment-related processes, due to its relatively low energy consumption and mild operation conditions. Polymer films and membranes have an important role to play in various membrane separation technologies. Polymer membranes have advantages such as light weight, high process flexibility, and low capital cost, and they have been extensively used for water purification, desalination, gas separation, and energy generation and storage.

This special issue focuses on Polymer Films/Membranes. In particular, the topic of interest includes but are not limited to:

  • The design and synthesis of polymer films and membranes;
  • New characterization techniques of polymer films and membranes;
  • The structure and property relationship of polymer membranes;
  • Application of polymer membranes for water purification, desalination, gas separation, energy generation, and storage, etc.

Dr. Xin Tong
Prof. Dr. Runlong Hao
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Coatings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

0 pages, 24607 KiB  
Article
Study on the Rapid Degradation Performance of Salix/Wheat Straw Fiber Degradable Film
by Yuehui Liang, Qian Zhang, Bo Wang, Zhanpeng Liang and Xin Wang
Coatings 2023, 13(10), 1803; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings13101803 - 20 Oct 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 956 | Correction
Abstract
The preparation of biodegradable mulch film to replace non-degradable mulch film is of great significance for reducing the harm of non-degradable agricultural mulch film to the environment. However, there are few studies on the degradation performance and degradation mechanisms of degradable cellulose mulch. [...] Read more.
The preparation of biodegradable mulch film to replace non-degradable mulch film is of great significance for reducing the harm of non-degradable agricultural mulch film to the environment. However, there are few studies on the degradation performance and degradation mechanisms of degradable cellulose mulch. Therefore, the wet papermaking process was adopted in this work. Salix fiber and wheat straw fiber were used as raw materials. A Salix/wheat straw fiber degradable film was prepared by adding cationic polyacrylamide, alkyl ketene dimer, and paraffin emulsion. The degradation process of cellulose film was studied using a UV degradation test and an acid-base degradation test system. The results showed that after 40 days of UV degradation, the degradation rate of Salix/wheat straw fiber degradable film could reach 6.66%. The tensile strength could still maintain 2.878 KN/m. The results of the brightness change index (ΔL) and color overall change index (ΔE) showed that the surface of the Salix/wheat straw fiber degradable film had been successfully partially degraded. After 4 days of alkaline degradation, the degradation rate could reach 11.89%. After 4 days of acid degradation, the degradation rate could reach 14.64%. At the same time, the specific degradation process of Salix/wheat straw fiber degradable film was further studied by infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. This work provides a new method for the study of agricultural degradable cellulose mulch, which is of great significance for the future development of agricultural mulch. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Films/Membranes: Structure, Properties, and Applications)
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14 pages, 3615 KiB  
Article
Water Resistance of Super Adhesive Emulsified Asphalt Based on Dynamic Water Scouring
by Xiujun Li, Yue Sun, Ningning Wang, Fangzhi Shi and Bin Peng
Coatings 2023, 13(10), 1776; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings13101776 - 16 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 664
Abstract
This study aimed to address the issue of inadequate water resistance in asphalt pavement tack coat materials by preparing super adhesive emulsified asphalt (SAE). Due to the lack of consideration of dynamic water scouring in previous studies on the water resistance analysis of [...] Read more.
This study aimed to address the issue of inadequate water resistance in asphalt pavement tack coat materials by preparing super adhesive emulsified asphalt (SAE). Due to the lack of consideration of dynamic water scouring in previous studies on the water resistance analysis of tack coat materials, this research employed self-designed inclined shear, pullout, and dynamic water scouring devices to examine the shear and tensile strength of matrix emulsified asphalt, styrene block copolymer (SBS)-modified emulsified asphalt, and SAE under various conditions of sprinkling volumes, temperatures, and scouring times. The findings indicate that, in the dynamic water scouring test conducted under the optimal sprinkling amount of tack coat material and the most unfavorable temperature conditions between layers, SAE exhibited residual shear and tensile strengths that were higher than SBS-modified emulsified asphalt and matrix emulsified asphalt. Combining polymerized styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) and polyurethane (PU) as two modifiers in the mix exhibits a synergistic effect, enhancing the bonding performance, scouring resistance, and water resistance of SAE as the tack coat material. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Films/Membranes: Structure, Properties, and Applications)
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16 pages, 3309 KiB  
Article
Using an Interlayer to Toughen Flexible Colorless Polyimide-Based Cover Windows
by Yusuke Matsuda, Yinjie Cen, Luke Bu, Jieqian Zhang, Kostantinos Kourtakis, Tao Huang, Yixuan Song, Mobin Yahyazadehfar, Derek Caputo, John Podhiny, Leopoldo Carbajal and Aref Samadi-Dooki
Coatings 2023, 13(9), 1597; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings13091597 - 13 Sep 2023
Viewed by 792
Abstract
Colorless polyimide (PI)-based flexible cover windows are a critical component of flexible electronics to protect devices from unwanted chemical and mechanical damage. The integration of flexible colorless PI-based windows into electronics applications is limited by the embrittlement of some colorless PI films when [...] Read more.
Colorless polyimide (PI)-based flexible cover windows are a critical component of flexible electronics to protect devices from unwanted chemical and mechanical damage. The integration of flexible colorless PI-based windows into electronics applications is limited by the embrittlement of some colorless PI films when they are coated with hard coats. Here, we investigate the embrittlement mechanism of hard-coated colorless PI films and the role of interlayers in toughening the colorless PI-based cover windows for flexible electronics applications. A fracture mechanics approach combined with finite element analysis (FEA) models is employed to compute fracture strain, εc, for different crack cases in the bilayer (hard coated colorless PI) and trilayer (with an additional interlayer) cover windows. For the model inputs and validation, the material properties of the cover windows are characterized. We show that the embrittlement is attributed to the fracture behavior of the cover windows, and placing a ductile interlayer increases the εc of colorless PI films. Using the fracture analysis as a design guide, we fabricate a trilayer cover window with an acrylic thermoset interlayer and demonstrate an improvement of the εc of the colorless PI cover window by ~42%. We believe our analysis provides insights into design guides for mechanically robust cover windows using colorless PI films and flexible HCs for emerging flexible electronics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Films/Membranes: Structure, Properties, and Applications)
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13 pages, 59762 KiB  
Article
Photocatalytic Self-Cleaning PVDF Membrane Blended with MWCNT-ZnO Nanocomposites for RhB Removal
by Dana Toloman, Maria Stefan, Sergiu Macavei, Lucian Barbu-Tudoran and Adriana Popa
Coatings 2023, 13(3), 594; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings13030594 - 10 Mar 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1426
Abstract
Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes blended with various amounts of MWCNT-ZnO (0.1%–3%) nanocomposites were prepared by the phase inversion method. The effect of nanocomposites blending on the membrane structural and morphological properties was investigated by XRD, FT-IR and SEM techniques. Contact angle measurement reveals [...] Read more.
Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes blended with various amounts of MWCNT-ZnO (0.1%–3%) nanocomposites were prepared by the phase inversion method. The effect of nanocomposites blending on the membrane structural and morphological properties was investigated by XRD, FT-IR and SEM techniques. Contact angle measurement reveals that the hydrophilicity of the membrane increases with the increase of nanocomposite content; a reduction of the contact angle from 103° for PVDF to 49° for hybrid membrane was obtained. An optimum amount of 0.5% of MWCNT-ZnO blended in a PVDF hybrid membrane assured 85% removal rate of RbB under UV light irradiation. It was observed that the pollutant removal occurs through the simultaneous action of two processes: adsorption and photocatalysis. By blending with MWCNT-ZnO nanoparticles, the PVDF membrane acquires photocatalytic properties which assure a self-cleaning property in the membrane, increasing its lifetime. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Films/Membranes: Structure, Properties, and Applications)
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12 pages, 3090 KiB  
Article
Insight on Atmospheric Hydrothermal Aging for Polyester and Polyimide Film Used in Dry-Type Reactor
by Hao Lin, Jiang Guo, Xiang Huang and Shengbao Jiang
Coatings 2023, 13(2), 253; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings13020253 - 21 Jan 2023
Viewed by 1077
Abstract
The breakdown of the dry-type reactor induced by being exposed to moisture needs to be further explored. For this purpose, as the common insulating films in the dry-type reactor, PET and PI films were targeted to investigate the effects of atmospheric hydrothermal aging [...] Read more.
The breakdown of the dry-type reactor induced by being exposed to moisture needs to be further explored. For this purpose, as the common insulating films in the dry-type reactor, PET and PI films were targeted to investigate the effects of atmospheric hydrothermal aging on the microstructure, thermal stability, and mechanical properties of the films. As the result of hydrothermal aging, the moisture-based thermal degradation obviously occurred on the surface of both PET and PI films, even at a low temperature. More defects and flaws can be observed on the surface of PET than that of PI film, which were responsible for decreasing the transmittance and tensile strength of films. According to the statistical analysis with a one-sample t test, the thermal stability of aged PET and PI films has no significant difference with raw films during the hydrothermal aging. Compared with thermal stress, the hydrolysis of ester linkage and the imide ring are the main factors of hydrothermal aging for PET and PI films, respectively. Improving the waterproof ability of PET and PI films can be effective to prevent deterioration of the interturn insulation performance of the dry-type reactor. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Films/Membranes: Structure, Properties, and Applications)
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14 pages, 2874 KiB  
Article
Structural Modifications of Sodium Polyacrylate-Polyacrylamide to Enhance Its Water Absorption Rate
by Ting Xu, Wenxiang Zhu and Jian Sun
Coatings 2022, 12(9), 1234; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings12091234 - 24 Aug 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3650
Abstract
Superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) can absorb a large amount of water and find broad applications in various industries. There are many reports on the synthesis and structural modification techniques to improve the water absorption property of SAPs. However, we see few studies on the [...] Read more.
Superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) can absorb a large amount of water and find broad applications in various industries. There are many reports on the synthesis and structural modification techniques to improve the water absorption property of SAPs. However, we see few studies on the comparison and integration of these techniques. In this study, three structurally modified SAPs were synthesized and are evaluated for the effects of surface cross-linking, foaming, and the integration of the two modifications to improve the absorption rate and capacity of a conventional SAP. First, sodium polyacrylate-polyacrylamide was prepared as the base polymer by the aqueous solution polymerization method. Second, the base polymer was modified with surface cross-linking to enhance absorption, and a surface cross-linked SAP was obtained. Third, the base polymer was modified with foaming to obtain a foamed SAP. Lastly, the foamed SAP was modified further with surface cross-linking to obtain a foamed and surface cross-linked SAP. In comparison with the base polymer, the three synthesized SAPs were evaluated for their absorption performance. Results show that their absorption performance could be improved by the three modification processes. Specifically, the surface cross-linked SAP had the best absorption capacity under load, the foamed SAP had the highest absorption capacity of 1954 g/g, and the foamed and surface cross-linked SAP had the fastest absorption rate with an initial swelling rate of Kis = 21.94. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Films/Membranes: Structure, Properties, and Applications)
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15 pages, 5355 KiB  
Article
Fabrication of a High Water Flux Conductive MWCNTs/PVC Composite Membrane with Effective Electrically Enhanced Antifouling Behavior
by Xi Chen, Jiabin Gao, Yunchang Song, Yaping Gong, Meng Qi and Runlong Hao
Coatings 2021, 11(12), 1548; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings11121548 - 16 Dec 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2552
Abstract
Membrane fouling is a major issue that deteriorates the performance of membrane filtration systems. The electrically assisted membrane filtration process is proven to be effective for alleviating membrane fouling. In this study, we synthesized an electrically conductive membrane by incorporating multiwalled carbon nanotubes [...] Read more.
Membrane fouling is a major issue that deteriorates the performance of membrane filtration systems. The electrically assisted membrane filtration process is proven to be effective for alleviating membrane fouling. In this study, we synthesized an electrically conductive membrane by incorporating multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) into polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The synthesized membranes have larger porosity than the PVC membrane (incorporating polyethylene glycol (PEG)), and thus possess much higher water flux under the same testing conditions. The initial and stable water fluxes are 2033 L/(m2·h) and 750 L/(m2·h), respectively, which are much higher than that of the pure PVC membrane. More importantly, the membrane has higher surface charge density and excellent electrical conductivity, but the surface hydrophilicity and toughness decreased with the addition of the MWCNTs. The 25 wt % MWCNTs/PVC composite membrane possesses suitable electrical conductivity of 0.128 S/m. The same membrane shows electro-enhanced antifouling performance during the antifouling test with yeast as a model foulant because the external electric field (−2 V) impulses a strong repulsion force while producing some micro bubbles to repel the foulant; thus, the membrane fouling is suppressed. In the current study, we develop a simple method to fabricate the electrically conductive membrane for application in the electrically assisted membrane filtration process. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Films/Membranes: Structure, Properties, and Applications)
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