The present invention relates to surface modifying agents for polymeric and/or textile materials, methods of making and/or using a surface modifying agent to modify and functionalize polymeric and/or textile materials, and/or methods of using surface modified or functionalized polymeric and textile materials, and/or products using or incorporating surface modified or functionalized polymeric and textile materials. For example, the surface modifying agent in precursor form can be styrene sulfonyl azide monomer, polymer or copolymer capable of undergoing a chemical reaction in the presence of heat or light to form one or more styrene sulfonated nitrene monomers, polymers or copolymers, which are capable of chemically reacting with the surface of a polymeric or textile material to endow a specific or desired chemical surface functionality to the surface of a polymeric or textile material. Furthermore, the present invention is possibly preferably directed to a surface modifying agent which comprises a styrene sulfonated nitrene monomer, polymer or polymer containing one or more nitrene functional groups, which are capable of chemically reacting via an insertion reaction into one or more carbon-hydrogen bonds on the surface of a polymeric or textile material in order to chemically attach a specific or desired chemical functionality to the surface of a polymeric or textile material.

Disclosed herein are methods of increasing the hydrophilicity of a membrane. Membranes comprising polyaniline or co-polymer thereof and one or more gel inhibiting agents are treated with one or more hydrophilicity restoration agents, thereby increasing the hydrophilicity of a membrane. Also disclosed are membranes produced by the disclosed methods. This abstract is intended as a scanning tool for purposes of searching in the particular art and is not intended to be limiting of the present invention.

An article that can be used for biomaterial capture comprises (a) a porous substrate; and (b) borne on the porous substrate, a polymer comprising interpolymerized units of at least one monomer consisting of (1) at least one monovalent ethylenically unsaturated group, (2) at least one monovalent ligand functional group selected from acidic groups, basic groups other than guanidino, and salts thereof, and (3) a multivalent spacer group that is directly bonded to the monovalent groups so as to link at least one ethylenically unsaturated group and at least one ligand functional group by a chain of at least six catenated atoms.

Chromatography devices and methods for forming and using the devices are described. The devices include a polyimide-based support phase and a polymer grafted to a surface of the polyimide-based support phase. A microwave-assisted graft polymerization protocol is described to form the polymer at the surface of the support phase. Devices can be utilized in high-efficiency separation of macromolecules such as proteins.

Durable asymmetric composite membranes consisting of a film of cross-linked poly(ether ether ketone) adhered to a sheet of hydrophilic microporous poly(ethylene) are disclosed. The membranes are suitable for use in the recovery or removal of water from feed streams where repeated clean-in-place protocols are required such as in the processing of dairy products.

Described herein is a graphene material and polymer-based anti-microbial element that provides anti-microbial capabilities. Described is an element that can also comprise a support. Also described is an element where the support can be the article to be protected from microbial buildup. Also described are methods for preventing microbial fouling by applying the aforementioned anti-microbial elements and related devices.

Provided herein are filtration membranes for water treatment, and methods for preventing fouling of such membranes. The method described herein comprises grafting the membrane surface with an organic moiety, by reacting the surface with an organometallic reagent, a phosphonate, a phosphinate, or an organosilane.

A high performance facilitated transport membrane comprising a metal cation exchanged/chelated carboxylic acid functional group containing functional polyimide, a method of making this a membrane, and the use of this membrane for olefin/paraffin separations, particularly for propylene/propane and ethylene/ethane separations. The facilitated transport membrane has either an asymmetric integrally skinned membrane structure or a thin film composite membrane structure, wherein the top selective layer of the membrane comprises a metal cation exchanged/chelated carboxylic acid functional group containing functional polyimide.

The present invention relates to a process for preparing an asymmetric integrally skinned membrane for the separation of at least one solute from a solution, comprising the steps of: (a) preparing a polybenzimidazole dope solution comprising: (i) a polybenzimidazole polymer, and (ii) a solvent system for said polybenzimidazole which is water miscible; (b) casting a film of said dope solution onto a support; (c) immersing the film cast on the support into a coagulating medium to form an asymmetric integrally skinned membrane; (d) treating the membrane from step (c) with a cross-linking agent; (e) treating the membrane from step (d) with a cross-link modification agent. Further aspects relate to an asymmetric integrally skinned membrane and uses thereof.

A polymerizable composition for forming an ion-exchange resin precursor, the polymerizable composition containing a monomer component and polyethylene particles in an amount of 50 to 120 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the monomer component, wherein the monomer component contains an aromatic monomer for introducing ion-exchange groups and a nitrogen-containing aliphatic monomer, the nitrogen-containing aliphatic monomer being present in an amount of 10 to 35% by mass in said monomer component. An ion-exchange membrane is produced by applying the polymerizable composition onto a polyolefin type filament base material and polymerizing the polymerizable composition to form an ion-exchange resin precursor and, thereafter, introducing ion-exchange groups into the precursor.