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Polymer Materials for Environmental Applications
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Polymer Materials for Environmental Applications

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymer Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 October 2025 | Viewed by 1823

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Pereira Douglas Henrique

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry, Technological Institute of Aviation, São Jose dos Campos 77 402-970, Brazil
Interests: theoretical chemistry; adsorption; degradation; interactions; contaminants; potentially toxic metals
Prof. Dr. Grasiele Soares Cavallini

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Tocantins, Gurupi 77402-970, TO, Brazil
Interests: photodegradation; adsorption; interactions; membranes; radicais
Dr. Anna Karla Pereira

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Tocantins, Gurupi 77402-970, TO, Brazil
Interests: complexes; photodegradation; adsorption; radicais; materials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Polymeric materials have numerous applications, and among those that deserve to be highlighted are the environmental ones. Different systems can be studied, such as i) the use of polymers for the adsorption of contaminants (pesticides, potentially toxic metals, and medicines, among others); ii) photocatalytic polymers: used in surface coatings without the degradation of organic compounds in water; iii) polymeric membranes and polymer filters used for filtration; iv) polymers for plant reinforcement that contributes to the restoration of ecosystems and the release of specific compounds; v) biodegradable plastics developed from renewable resources; and iv) conductive polymers that can be used for renewable energy storage and other applications. This Special Issue on “Polymer Materials for Environmental Applications” seeks high-quality research focusing on polymeric materials and their different environmental applications.

Dr. Pereira Douglas Henrique
Prof. Dr. Grasiele Soares Cavallini
Dr. Anna Karla Pereira
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • polymers
  • adsorption
  • energy
  • photocatalysis
  • separation
  • biodegradable
  • degradation
  • remediation

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 1540 KiB  
Article
Polymeric Membrane Contactors for CO2 Separation: A Systematic Literature Analysis of the Impact of Absorbent Temperature
by Edoardo Magnone, Min Chang Shin and Jung Hoon Park
Polymers 2025, 17(10), 1387; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym17101387 - 18 May 2025
Viewed by 333
Abstract
Global warming, driven significantly by carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, necessitates immediate climate action. Consequently, CO2 capture is essential for mitigating carbon output from industrial and power generation processes. This study investigates the effect of absorbent temperature on CO2 separation [...] Read more.
Global warming, driven significantly by carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, necessitates immediate climate action. Consequently, CO2 capture is essential for mitigating carbon output from industrial and power generation processes. This study investigates the effect of absorbent temperature on CO2 separation performance using gas–liquid polymeric hollow fiber membrane (HFM) contactors. It summarizes the relationship between liquid-phase temperature and CO2 capture efficiency across various physical and chemical absorption processes. Twelve relevant studies (nine experimental, three mathematical), providing a comprehensive database of 104 individual measurements, were rigorously analyzed. Liquid-phase temperature significantly influences CO2 separation performance in HFM contactors. In particular, the present analysis reveals that, overall, for every 10 °C temperature increase, physical absorption performance decreases by approximately 3%, while chemical absorption performance improves by 3%, regardless of other parameters. This empirical law was confirmed by direct comparisons with additional experimental results. Strategies for further development of these processes are also proposed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Materials for Environmental Applications)
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18 pages, 943 KiB  
Article
Sustainable Photocatalysis with Phenyl-Modified g-C3N4/TiO2 Polymer Hybrids: A Combined Computational and Experimental Investigation
by Riccardo Dettori, Sahar Aghapour Ghourichay, Stefania Porcu, Claudio Melis, Luciano Colombo and Pier Carlo Ricci
Polymers 2025, 17(10), 1331; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym17101331 - 14 May 2025
Viewed by 403
Abstract
We combined atomistic simulations and experiments to assess the photocatalytic potential of the rutile phase of TiO2 combined with phenyl-modified carbon nitride (PhCN). Density Functional Tight Binding (DFTB) calculations predict favorable adhesion properties and type-II band alignment, crucial for efficient charge separation [...] Read more.
We combined atomistic simulations and experiments to assess the photocatalytic potential of the rutile phase of TiO2 combined with phenyl-modified carbon nitride (PhCN). Density Functional Tight Binding (DFTB) calculations predict favorable adhesion properties and type-II band alignment, crucial for efficient charge separation between PhCN and rutile TiO2 surfaces. These theoretical predictions are validated experimentally: structural (XRD and Raman) and optical characterizations confirm the successful formation of a PhCN/rutile hybrid and indicate beneficial electronic interactions. Importantly, photocatalytic tests under visible light reveal significant degradation activity, confirming that the computationally predicted synergistic effects render the PhCN/rutile system a promising, potentially greener alternative to traditional anatase-based photocatalysts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Materials for Environmental Applications)
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15 pages, 3598 KiB  
Article
Triclosan Adsorption on Chitosan: Computational Study of Molecular Interactions and Potential for Environmental Remediation
by Cleidiane Cardoso Teixeira, Anna Karla dos Santos Pereira, Grasiele Soares Cavallini and Douglas Henrique Pereira
Polymers 2025, 17(4), 487; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym17040487 - 13 Feb 2025
Viewed by 693
Abstract
The compound triclosan (TCS) is widely found in personal hygiene products, and when present in effluents, it can cause problems to human health, such as endocrine disruption, intestinal problems, and liver tumors. A sustainable alternative for the removal of TCS is the use [...] Read more.
The compound triclosan (TCS) is widely found in personal hygiene products, and when present in effluents, it can cause problems to human health, such as endocrine disruption, intestinal problems, and liver tumors. A sustainable alternative for the removal of TCS is the use of adsorbent biopolymers, which are low-cost, renewable, and biodegradable. One of the most widely used biopolymers is chitosan (CHT), which has excellent adsorptive properties due to its functional groups. In this context, the present work evaluated, through computational simulations, the interaction of the TCS molecule with CHT. The frontier molecular orbitals and the molecular electrostatic potential show that different forms of interactions can occur, and thus, five complexes were shown to be stable after the optimization of the interactions. The bond lengths of the interactions ranged from 1.839 Å to 3.606 Å and were formed mainly by hydrogen bonds and H...Cl interactions. The binding energy (∆EBind) allowed us to infer that adsorption occurred, ∆EBind < 0, and the values ranged from −4.14 kcal mol−1 to −17.74 kcal mol−1. The thermodynamic properties demonstrated that the process was exothermic and that two complexes were spontaneous: TCS...CHTiii with ΔG= −3.14 kcal mol−1 and TCS...CHTiv with ΔG= −2.82 kcal mol−1. The topological parameters revealed that almost all interactions between TCS and CHT were electrostatic, and the non-covalent interaction analysis confirmed the presence of van der Waals interaction between the complexes. Thus, it can be confirmed that this study showed the efficient use of chitosan for the treatment of effluents containing the emerging contaminant triclosan. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer Materials for Environmental Applications)
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