Baojiang Liu

Construction of fiber-based BiVO 4 /SiO 2 /reduced graphene oxide (RGO) with efficient visible light photocatalytic activity

The visible light-responsive photocatalyst BiVO4/SiO2/reduced graphene oxide (RGO) was synthesized by hydrothermal method. For easy collection and reuse in slurry systems, RGO/BiVO4/SiO2 was immobilized on the cotton fiber by ultrasonic-heating technology. The characterization results indicated that the surface of cotton fiber was uniformly covered with BiVO4/SiO2/RGO photocatalyst. The loaded BiVO4/SiO2/RGO endowed the composite fibers with an excellent photocatalytic activity and recyclability for the degradation of the C.I. Reactive Blue 19 under visible light irradiation. The introduction of RGO exhibited the great dispersibility of photocatalyst in aqueous solution and the high absorbance of positive metal ions, which enhanced its photocatalytic performance. Given the above research results, the flexible fiber-based BiVO4/SiO2/RGO composite would have potential applications in the water/air purification field.

Photocatalytic degradation of C.I. reactive blue 19 by using novel nano BiVO4-coated cotton fabric

Bismuth vanadate-coated cotton fabric was synthesized by a chemical bath deposition method at low temperature (≤100℃) and characterized by using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and UV-V is diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. Its photocatalytic activities were evaluated by decomposition of C.I. reactive blue 19 in aqueous solution under visible light irradiation. The as-prepared composite possesses excellent photocatalytic activity for the degradation of liquid contamination especially in static system due to its large specific surface area. The reduction of total organic carbon (about 48.0% after 4 h of irradiation) showed that the mineralization of C.I. Reactive Blue 19 over the bismuth vanadate-coated cotton fabric is realizable. Moreover, the preparation of the composites is convenient for potential practical application. The formation mechanism of bismuth vanadate on the fabric was also discussed preliminarily.

Preparation of silver-plated polyimide fabric initiated by polyaniline with electromagnetic shielding properties:

A novel and efficient method for the electroless silver plating polyimide fabric was developed with electromagnetic shielding properties. Firstly, polyaniline (PANi) was in situ polymerized with ammonium persulfate used as oxidizing agent. Secondly, Ag+ was in situ reduced to Ag0 by PANi, and the electroless silver plating was initiated by Ag0 used as active center. Fourier transform infrared, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, contact angle analysis and energy dispersive spectroscopy were used to characterize the composite fabric. It could be observed that silver layer-coated polyimide fabric was compact and uniform with surface resistance about 0.02 Ω/sq. The thermal stability was evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis. The as-prepared fabric had excellent anti-corrosion, tensile strength and fastness. The shielding effectiveness of this fabric could reach 54–90 dB, which implied it was a good candidate as electromagnetic shielding materials in many fields.

Antibacterial finishing of cotton fabrics based on thiol-maleimide click chemistry

Cotton fabrics with durable antibacterial properties were prepared by a novel method of thiol-maleimide click reaction. Firstly, 3-Mercaptopropyltriethoxysilane was utilized as a modifier to generate thiol groups on the cotton surface. Then, these thiol groups reacted with N-phenyl-male-imide through thiol-maleimide click chemistry. The surface morphology of the treated fabrics and the reaction mechanism were characterized by FT-IR, Raman, EDS, XPS and SEM. Antibacterial activities, mechanical properties and thermal performance of treated cotton fabrics were also investigated. The Escherichia coli antibacterial rate of treated cotton was 99.56% and the Staphylococcus aureus antibacterial rate of treated cotton was 98.91%, with only a slight decrease after 10 cycles of standard washing, to 88.69 and 87.66%, respectively. These results demonstrated that this treatment effectively endowed cotton fabrics with durable antibacterial properties due to the chemical bonding formed between the antibacterial agent and the substrate. In addition, the treated cotton fabrics maintained good mechanical properties and thermal stability.Graphical Abstract