Natural polypeptides treat pollution complex： Moistureresistant multi-functional protein nanofabrics for sustainable air filtration

作     者：Huafeng Tian Xuewei Fu Min Zheng Yu Wang Yichao Li Aimin Xiang Wei-Hong Zhong 

作者机构：School of Material and Mechanical Engineering Beijing Technology and Business University Beijing 100048 China School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering Washington State University Pullman Washington 99164 USA School of Aerospace Engineering Huazhong University of Science and Technology Wuhan 430074 China 

出 版 物：《Nano Research》 (纳米研究（英文版）)

年 卷 期：2018年第11卷第8期

页      面：4265-4277页

核心收录：

学科分类：0710[理学-生物学] 071010[理学-生物化学与分子生物学] 081704[工学-应用化学] 07[理学] 08[工学] 0817[工学-化学工程与技术] 081404[工学-供热、供燃气、通风及空调工程] 0814[工学-土木工程] 

基　　金：国家自然科学基金 Beijing Top Young Innovative Talents Program supported by USDA NIFA 

主　　题：zein nanofabric multi-functionalair-filtration water-resistant protein air-filter 

摘      要：Development of ＂green＂ multi-functional air filters with features such as excellent filtration efficiency eco-friendliness, and environmental stability are critically required to address the increasing concerns of polluted air. Natural proteins, such as soy protein and gelatin, are attractive candidates as multi-functional air-filtration materials owing to the rich functional groups; however, these bio-materials are vulnerable to moisture, which limits their broad application in practice. In this work, a hydrophobic protein of zein derived from abundant corn is modified for the first time to produce high-performance nanofilters via electrospinning. The zein nanofabrics are fabricated with the aid of a non-toxic solvent and co-electrospinning agent, poly（ethylene oxide）. The results reveal that the zein-based nanofabrics show high efficiency for the simultaneous removal of particulate matters of different sizes ranging from 0.1 to 10 btm （〉 99.5%） and certain gaseous toxic chemicals （〉 70%）. In addition, the zein nanofabrics show excellent moisture-resistance and good adhesion to the cellulose paper towel used as the air-filter substrate. This study demonstrates that nanofabrics based on hydrophobic natural proteins such as zein are promising materials for developing multi-functional ＂green＂ air filters.