Imitated Core-Shell Molecularly Imprinted Membranes for Selective Separation Applications: A Synergetic Strategy by Polydopamine and SiO2

Abstract Development of high-efficiency separation materials with specific recognition sites has become an urgent and important task. Herein, a synergetic strategy based on polydopamine (pDA) and silicon dioxide nanoparticles (SiO2) was successfully designed and developed for the preparation of imitated core-shell-based cloxacillin-imprinted nanocomposite membranes (ICCIMs-D/S). Cloxacillin (Col) was selected as the template resulting from the potential threat to environment and human health. As to the synthesis procedure of ICCIMs-D/S, the pDA-modified layers were uniformly loaded onto substrate membranes by developing an elevated phase transformation method. Based on it, the synergy processes of pDA and SiO2 could be achieved on surface of porous membranes. The ICCIMs-D/S with Col-imprinted recognition sites were finally synthesized by the photo-initiated “mercapto-alkenes click chemistry” method using methacrylic acid as functional monomers. Notably, the satisfactory rebinding selectivity (α>4.0) and permselectivity (β>4.0) with outstanding regeneration performance (only 5.11% decrease after ten regeneration cycles) indicated the superior selectivity and stability of the as-obtained ICCIMs-D/S. The preparation strategy and ICCIMs-D/S developed in this work is expected to provide a feasible idea for selective separation of Col from wastewater.