Synthesis of mesoporous salen polymer nanospheres for highly efficient photocatalytic extraction of uranium from seawater.
- 1Department of Chemistry, Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Catalysis and Innovative Materials, State Key Laboratory of Porous Materials for Separation and Conversion, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
Abstract
Efficient uranium extraction from seawater is essential to the long-term sustainability of nuclear energy, yet the rational design of high-performance materials for this purpose remains a formidable challenge. Herein, we develop an ionization-regulated self-assembly strategy to synthesize mesoporous salen polymer nanospheres (mDSR) for photocatalytic uranium extraction. Partial ionization improves the aqueous solubility of otherwise insoluble salen ligands and enhances their reactivity toward formaldehyde, while preserving sufficient precursor-micelle interactions for co-assembly, thereby directing the formation of ordered mesostructures. This strategy is facile, universal, and it can accommodate a series of structurally distinct salen ligands, enabling the modular construction of mesoporous polymers with programmable molecular functions. The mDSR nanospheres feature a large pore size (6.2 nm), a high surface area (68 m2 g-1) and intrinsic photocatalytic activity. As a result, under simulated sunlight and without sacrificial agents, mDSR achieves a high uranium uptake capacity of 867 mg U g-1 from a 10 ppm U(VI) solution, outperforming most adsorbents. This protocol establishes a new paradigm for functional mesoporous polymers.
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BibTeX
@article{chu2026synthesis,
title = {{Synthesis of mesoporous salen polymer nanospheres for highly efficient photocatalytic extraction of uranium from seawater.}},
author = {Yenpin Chu and Yan Ai and Yuxuan Li and Jun Wang and Kailin Li and Ziqing Yin and Xiaomin Li and Tongtao Li and Dongyuan Zhao and Wei Li},
journal = {National science review},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1093/nsr/nwag569},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42953315},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Synthesis of mesoporous salen polymer nanospheres for highly efficient photocatalytic extraction of uranium from seawater.
AU - Yenpin Chu
AU - Yan Ai
AU - Yuxuan Li
AU - Jun Wang
AU - Kailin Li
AU - Ziqing Yin
AU - Xiaomin Li
AU - Tongtao Li
AU - Dongyuan Zhao
AU - Wei Li
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/03
JO - National science review
DO - 10.1093/nsr/nwag569
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42953315
AB - Efficient uranium extraction from seawater is essential to the long-term sustainability of nuclear energy, yet the rational design of high-performance materials for this purpose remains a formidable challenge. Herein, we develop an ionization-regulated self-assembly strategy to synthesize mesoporous salen polymer nanospheres (mDSR) for photocatalytic uranium extraction. Partial ionization improves the aqueous solubility of otherwise insoluble salen ligands and enhances their reactivity toward formaldehyde, while preserving sufficient precursor-micelle interactions for co-assembly, thereby directing the formation of ordered mesostructures. This strategy is facile, universal, and it can accommodate a series of structurally distinct salen ligands, enabling the modular construction of mesoporous polymers with programmable molecular functions. The mDSR nanospheres feature a large pore size (6.2 nm), a high surface area (68 m2 g-1) and intrinsic photocatalytic activity. As a result, under simulated sunlight and without sacrificial agents, mDSR achieves a high uranium uptake capacity of 867 mg U g-1 from a 10 ppm U(VI) solution, outperforming most adsorbents. This protocol establishes a new paradigm for functional mesoporous polymers.
SN - 2095-5138
SN - 2053-714X
ER -