Disclosed is a resilient foam and methods of making the foam. The resilient foam includes a derivatized polyanionic polysaccharide and has an open-cell structure. When the resilient foam is contacted with water, the foam forms a thixotropic hydrogel.

Provided is a unique class of foam materials characterized by regions of material unidirectionality. The foam materials are configured for a great variety of end-use applications as core materials or as materials in construction of multilayered structures. The novel and ingenious process for making the composite materials of the invention, permits modifying the foam materials to suite any specific end use.

Disclosed are a scrub sponge and a preparation method therefor. The method for preparing the scrub sponge includes the operations of: obtaining a first mixture by stirring alkalizer, porogen, konjac powder, scrub granule and water, and filling the first mixture into a mold to form a preform, where the preform includes a first sponge layer; forming a parison by sequentially cooking and freezing the preform; and sequentially unfreezing, dehydrating and drying the parison to obtain the scrub sponge.

Disclosed herein is a porous material comprising a biopolymer functionalized with a carbon dioxide capturing moiety; where the biopolymer is in the form of a foam or an aerogel having a bulk density of 500 grams per cubic meter to 2500 grams per cubic meter. Disclosed herein too is a method comprising functionalizing a biopolymer with a carbon dioxide capturing moiety; dissolving the biopolymer in an aqueous solution to form a first solution; reducing the temperature of the first solution to below the freezing point of the aqueous solution; displacing the aqueous solution with a first solvent that has a lower surface tension than a surface tension of the aqueous solution; and drying the first solvent to produce a porous biopolymer having a bulk density of 500 grams per cubic meter to 2500 grams per cubic meter.

The present invention relates to a method for preparing a porous scaffold for tissue engineering. It is another object of the present invention to provide a porous scaffold obtainable by the method as above described, and its use for tissue engineering, cell culture and cell delivery. The method of the invention comprises the steps consisting of: a) preparing an alkaline aqueous solution comprising an amount of at least one polysaccharide, an amount of a cross-linking agent and an amount of a porogen agent b) transforming the solution into a hydrogel by placing said solution at a temperature from about 4 C. to about 80 C. for a sufficient time to allow the cross-linking of said amount of polysaccharide and c) submerging said hydrogel into an aqueous solution d) washing the porous scaffold obtained at step c).

This disclosure provides systems, methods, and apparatus related to thermoelectric polymer aerogels. In one aspect, a method includes depositing a solution on a substrate. The solution comprises a thermoelectric polymer. Solvent of the solution is removed to form a layer of the thermoelectric polymer. The layer is placed in a polar solvent to form a gel comprising the thermoelectric polymer. The gel is cooled to freeze the polar solvent. The gel is placed in a vacuum environment to sublimate the polar solvent from the gel to form an aerogel comprising the thermoelectric polymer.

An anti-biofouling shape-memory composite aerogel includes a unidirectional chitosan aerogel channel, a plant polyphenol coating, and a polyphenol/iron ion chelate. The plant polyphenol coating is evenly distributed on an inner wall of the unidirectional chitosan aerogel channel, and the polyphenol/iron ion chelate is located at a top end of the unidirectional chitosan aerogel channel. The anti-biofouling chitosan-based composite aerogel has an evaporation rate of 1.96 kg.Math.m.sup.2.Math.h.sup.1 at an illumination intensity of 1 kW/m.sup.2. The composite aerogel has shape-memory properties, and can quickly restore its original shape in water after extrusion, thereby accelerating the diffusion of substances to complete the modification of inner channels. In this way, desirable anti-biofouling ability is achieved, and excellent structural stability as well as continuous and efficient photothermal water evaporation are guaranteed in a complex water environment.

A method for making an aerogel includes the steps of a) soaking a wet gel having a liquid phase in at least one solvent to substantially replace the liquid phase in the wet gel with the solvent to form a soaked gel; b) freezing the soaked gel to form a frozen gel; and c) drying the frozen gel in a vacuum chamber to form an aerogel.

Provided is a gelled carbon-based composition forming an organic polymeric monolithic gel capable of forming a porous carbon monolith by pyrolysis, a use thereof and a process for preparing this composition. A composition according to the invention is based on a resin derived at least partly from polyhydroxybenzene(s) R and formaldehyde(s) F, has a thermal conductivity of less than or equal to 40 mW.Math.m.sup.1.Math.K.sup.1, and includes at least one water-soluble cationic polyelectrolyte P. A process for preparing this composition comprises: a) polymerization, in an aqueous solvent, of the polyhydroxybenzene(s) and formaldehyde(s), in the presence of at least one cationic polyelectrolyte dissolved in this solvent and of a catalyst, in order to obtain a solution based on the resin, b) gelling of the solution in order to obtain a gel, and c) drying in order to obtain the organic polymeric monolithic gel.

The present invention discloses a versatile, macroporous, omniphilic polymeric sponges for absorption of organic liquids of varying polarity as well as water. Particularly, disclosed herein is an ice-templated macroporous omniphilic polymeric sponge as inexpensive versatile absorbents.