Rui-Lin Liu

Biomass-derived highly porous functional carbon fabricated by using a free-standing template for efficient removal of methylene blue

Banana peel (BP), a biomass waste, was converted into a valuable highly porous functional carbon material (HPFCM) by a general chelate-assisted co-assembly process. The HPFCMs were fabricated by using Al(III)-based metal-organic framework-like as a free-standing template and commercial Pluronic F127 as a microstructure-directing agent. Several critical variables for fabrication including doses of Al(III) and F127, carbonization temperature had been optimized and the adsorption behavior of HPFCMs was examined by using methylene blue as dye model compound. The optimal adsorbent was validated as HPFCMs-5-1-800, and its equilibrium data were well fitted to the Langmuir isotherm model with a monolayer adsorption capacity of 385.12 mg g(-1) at ambient temperature. The surface physical properties of HPFCMs-5-1-800 were also exemplarily characterized. The findings revealed that the free-standing template is a potential route for preparation of HPFCM from waste BP.

Study on the PEG-based microwave-assisted extraction of flavonoid compounds from persimmon leaves.

A method for PEG-based microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) of flavonoid compounds from persimmon leaves has been successfully developed. The extraction efficiency of total flavonoid content was evaluated by the chromatographic peak areas of quercetin and kaempferol, which are two bioactive components typically found in persimmon leaves. The best combination of extraction parameters was obtained with response surface methodology. A microwave power of 525 W, liquid to solid ratio of 17:1 mL/g, and PEG aqueous solution concentration of 60% w/w were identified as the optimum parameters. Extraction dynamics analysis indicated that the quercetin, kaempferol, and total flavonoid contents were rising with increasing extraction time up to 20-25 min, from which point onwards they all decreased. Under the optimum conditions, quercetin, kaempferol, and total flavonoid contents obtained from the sample were 1.20 ± 0.05, 0.64 ± 0.11, and 16.90 ± 0.06 mg/g, respectively. Compared with ethanol-based MAE, and ethanol-based and PEG-based ultrasonic-assisted extractions, PEG-based MAE had higher efficiency for the extraction of flavonoid compounds from persimmon leaves. Overall, PEG-based MAE represents an efficient choice for the extraction of bioactive substances from traditional Chinese medicines.

Polyethylene glycol as a novel solvent for extraction of crude polysaccharides from Pericarpium granati.

Polyethylene glycol aqueous solution (PEGs), an environmentally friendly solvent was used, for the first time, to develop an extraction method for crude polysaccharides from pericarpium granati with ultrasonic-microwave-assisted extraction (UMAE). Compared with other extraction solvents, PEGs, especially PEG400, displayed a higher extraction yield. The extraction conditions were an ultrasonic power of 240 W, a microwave power of 365 W, a PEG400 concentration of 30% and a ratio of liquid to raw material of 20 mL/g, optimized by using Box-Behnken experimental design. Under these conditions, an extraction yield of 7.94 ± 0.3% (n=3) was obtained, which is about 25% higher than that with water as a solvent, and the polysaccharides content in pericarpium granati was 6.56 ± 0.01 mg/g expressed as glucose.

β-Cyclodextrin anchoring onto pericarpium granati-derived magnetic mesoporous carbon for selective capture of lopid in human serum and pharmaceutical wastewater samples.

Functionalized magnetic carbonaceous nanomaterials, which are important materials with many practical and research applications in biomedical, pharmaceutical and biological fields, have recently attracted much attention. In this study, a magnetic mesoporous carbon coated with β-cyclodextrin (MMC@β-CD) was synthesized for the first time from natural pericarpium granati (PG). The as-obtained MMC@β-CD has high surface areas (203 m(2)g(-1)), large pore volumes (0.16 cm(3)g(-1)), relatively broad mesoporous sizes (6.8 nm) and a high saturation magnetization of 26.2 emu g(-1), which is sufficient for magnetic separation by an external magnetic field. The MMC@β-CD was used as an innovative adsorbent for magnetic solid-phase extraction of lopid via host-guest interaction prior to spectrofluorometric analysis. The proposed method was successfully applied to analyze lopid in human serum and pharmaceutical wastewater samples with recoveries in the range of 85.0-103.5% for the spiked samples. Overall, this work not only provides an inexpensive and eco-friendly method to fabricate MMC@β-CD (or MMC) from PG, but also develops a highly selective approach for capture of lopid in biological samples and environmental substances.

Microwave-assisted one-step extraction-derivatization for rapid analysis of fatty acids profile in herbal medicine by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A rapid and practical microwave-assisted one-step extraction-derivatization (MAED) method was developed for gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of fatty acids profile in herbal medicine. Several critical experimental parameters for MAED, including reaction temperature, microwave power and the amount of derivatization reagent (methanol), were optimized with response surface methodology. The results showed that the chromatographic peak areas of total fatty acids and total unsaturated fatty acids content obtained with MAED were markedly higher than those obtained by the conventional Soxhlet or microwave extraction and then derivatization method. The investigation of kinetics and thermodynamics of the derivatization reaction revealed that microwave assistance could reduce activation energy and increase the Arrhenius pre-exponential factor. The MAED method simplified the sample preparation procedure, shortened the reaction time, but improved the extraction and derivatization efficiency of lipids and reduced ingredient losses, especially for the oxidization and isomerization of unsaturated fatty acids. The simplicity, speed and practicality of this method indicates great potential for high throughput analysis of fatty acids in natural medicinal samples.

Eco-friendly fabrication of sponge-like magnetically carbonaceous fiber aerogel for high-efficiency oil–water separation

To handle oil spillage and chemical leakage accidents, the development of novel sorbent materials is of global significance for environment and water source protection. In this work, a magnetically carbonaceous fiber (MCF) aerogel was for the first time fabricated by a facile approach from natural cotton as a precursor, and this material can be used as a potential adsorbent without any further chemical modification for oil–water separation under demanding conditions. Owing to its unique and superior properties, such as twisted fiber structure, light weight, high porosity, desirable hydrophobicity, excellent separation efficiency, and strong thermal/mechanical stability, the MCF aerogel exhibits a high adsorption capacity for organic solvents and oils (22–87 times its own weight) and good recyclability. Coupled with the simple, low-cost, and environment-friendly synthesis process, the MCF aerogel will be a promising candidate for removing organic pollutants in environmental pollution cleanup. Hopefully, the MCF aerogel and the corresponding fabrication approach will be further applied to extensive applications including energy storage, fabrication of multifunctional composite materials, and so on.

Fabrication of magnetic carbonaceous solid acids from banana peel for the esterification of oleic acid

Magnetic carbonaceous solid acids (MCSAs), which are important materials with many practical and research applications, have recently attracted much attention. In this work, a valuable type of MCSA with superparamagnetism was synthesized using a facile strategy, i.e., integrated fast pyrolysis of Fe(III)-based complexes and vapor-phase sulfonation from waste banana peel (BP). This versatile strategy enables the simple preparation of MCSAs with easily tunable surface areas (156–1097 m2 g−1) and pore volumes (0.17–0.74 cm3 g−1), and relatively large average mesoporous sizes (6.1–11.4 nm), by simply varying the dosage of Fe(III) ions. The as-prepared MCSAs have excellent catalytic activity in the esterification of oleic acid with methanol, far higher than that of the commercial Amberlyst-15, sulfonated activated carbon and niobic acid under the same conditions. In particular, the catalytic activity of the obtained MCSAs rivals that of a homogeneous H2SO4 catalyst. The present work provides an inexpensive and environmentally friendly method to synthesize MCSAs from waste BP and may contribute to a holistic approach for biomass conversion.

Rapid analysis of fatty acid profiles in raw nuts and seeds by microwave–ultrasonic synergistic in situ extraction–derivatisation and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

Based on microwave-ultrasonic synergistic in situ extraction-derivatisation (MUED), gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was proposed for rapid analysis of fatty acid profiles in raw nut and seed materials. Several critical experimental parameters for MUED, including reaction temperature, microwave power, amounts of catalyst and derivatisation reagent, have been optimised using response surface methodology. The results showed that the chromatographic peak areas of total fatty acids and the content of total unsaturated fatty acids obtained with MUED were markedly higher than those obtained by the conventional method (P<0.05 and P<0.01, respectively). The MUED method simplified the handling steps compared to the conventional procedure, shortened the sample preparation time whilst improving the extraction and derivatisation efficiency of lipids, and reduced oxidisation and decomposition of the unsaturated fatty acids. The simplicity, robustness and practicality of this method highlighted its significant potential for application in the rapid analysis of fatty acids in natural food resource samples.

Three-dimensional cell bioreactor coupled with high performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry for the affinity screening of bioactive components from herb medicine

An efficient and convenient method, three-dimensional (3-D) cell bioreactor coupled with high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was developed for affinity screening and analysis of multiple bioactive components from herbal medicines. Cancer cells were cultured on a porous scaffold to form a 3-D cell bioreactor. After interacting with live and fixed cells, the HPLC fingerprinting chromatograms of herbal medicine extract were compared to evaluate the binding properties of herbal components on cells. Model anticancer drugs (paclitaxel and resveratrol) and non-anticancer drugs (ketoprofen and penicillin G) were chosen to investigate the feasibility. When cell-drug interaction time was 30 min, the binding degrees of paclitaxel and resveratrol (each 15 μg/ml) were 82.2±7.2% and 66.1±4.1%, and for ketoprofen and penicillin G (each 15 μg/ml) were less than 3%. This method was used to screen bioactive components from Polygonum cillinerve (Nakai) Ohwi (PCO) extract, and the binding degrees of two main components in PCO extract (10 μg/ml), aristolochic acid A and aristolochic acid B, were 63.0±5.1% and 18.8±0.9%, respectively. These results demonstrated that this method was highly specific, efficient and convenient for affinity screening and analysis of bioactive components interacted with cells.

Study of the allergenic benzypenicilloyl–HSA and its specific separation from human plasma by a pre-designed hybrid imprinted membrane

Benzylpenicilloyl/albumin conjugates (BP–HSA) which have lost all antibacterial activity but possess an immunogenic potential were systematically studied by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight-mass spectrometry, polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and ultraviolet spectrophotometry. The results showed that the conjugation rate was in the range of 8 : 1–18 : 1. The interaction between human serum albumin (HSA) and penicilloic acid (BPA) was firstly studied by using molecular docking. The results showed that at least 8 activity sites existed on HSA for the conjugation of BPA. BP–HSA was imprinted onto a macroporous chitosan/polyvinylpyrrolidone/carbon nanotubes carrier by using surface precipitation polymerization, and a pre-designed hybrid imprinted membrane (CPC-MIM) was obtained to achieve the specific capturing of BP–HSA from human plasma. The morphologies and physical/chemical properties of membranes were systematically characterized by scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, Fourier translation infrared spectra, differential scanning calorimeter, thermogravimetric analysis and contact angle measurement. The results indicated that CPC-MIM possessed superior properties for the selective adsorption of BP–HSA and it also had a relatively good thermal stability. The adsorption properties of CPC-MIM were evaluated by comparing with other different constituents of membranes. The results revealed that the maximum adsorptive capacity and imprint factor of CPC-MIM were 0.538 μmol cm−3 and 3.3, respectively. Compared with other proteins, CPC-MIM showed a specific adsorption capacity for BP–HSA, and CPC-MIM could selectively capture BP–HSA from human plasma. This study provides a basis for the further research of the allergic mechanism of penicillins, and the generated hybrid imprinted membrane could potentially be an outstanding separation material for the large-scale continuous selective separation of target proteins from a complex matrix.