Entrapment of nanomaterial within mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer

Abstract

A method of entrapping a material with at least one nanoscale dimension within a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer, comprising the steps of preparing a colloidal suspension (wherein the colloidal suspension contains one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions in a compatible solvent), exposing a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer to the colloidal suspension, entrapping within the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions, and removing solvent from the resulting composite. A mesoporous natural fiber welded biopolymer material with entrapped materials of nanoscale dimensions which exhibits properties and/or functions that are the combination of those from the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer and the entrapped material(s) with nanoscale dimensions.

What we claim is: 
     
         1 . A method of entrapping one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions within a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer comprising the steps of:
 preparing a colloidal suspension;
 wherein the colloidal suspension comprises one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions dispersed within a solvent; 
   exposing a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer comprising a mesoporous network to the colloidal suspension; and   uptaking within the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions from the colloidal suspension.   
     
     
         2 . The method of entrapping one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions within a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer of  claim 1  further comprising the steps of:
 removing the solvent from the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer; 
 causing the collapse of the mesoporous network; and 
 entrapping the one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions within the fiber welded biopolymer. 
 
     
     
         3 . The method of entrapping one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions within a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer of  claim 1  further comprising the steps of:
 rinsing the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer containing the entrapped material with nanoscale dimensions with solvent; and 
 removing any transient materials with nanoscale dimensions which were not partially or totally entrapped within the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer. 
 
     
     
         4 . The method of entrapping one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions within a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer of  claim 2  further comprising the steps of:
 rinsing the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer containing the entrapped materials with nanoscale dimensions with solvent; and 
 removing any transient materials with nanoscale dimensions which were not totally entrapped within the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer. 
 
     
     
         5 . The method of entrapping one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions within a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer of  claim 3  further comprising the step of:
 removing the solvent from the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer containing the entrapped material with nanoscale dimensions. 
 
     
     
         6 . The method of entrapping one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions within a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer of  claim 4  further comprising the step of:
 removing the solvent from the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer containing the entrapped materials with nanoscale dimensions. 
 
     
     
         7 . A mesoporous natural fiber welded (NFW) biopolymer material with entrapped materials of nanoscale dimensions made from the steps of:
 preparing a colloidal suspension;
 wherein the colloidal suspension comprises one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions in a solvent; 
   exposing a mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer to the colloidal suspension;   entrapping within the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer the one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions; and   removing the solvent from the mesoporous fiber welded biopolymer containing the entrapped materials with nanoscale dimensions.   
     
     
         8 . The mesoporous NFW biopolymer material incorporating one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions of  claim 7  wherein
 the composite exhibits a property and/or function imparted by the biopolymer; and 
 the composite exhibits a property and/or function imparted by the embedded material(s) with nanoscale dimensions. 
 
     
     
         9 . A mesoporous NFW biopolymer material incorporating one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions comprising:
 a mesoporous natural fiber welded biopolymer; and   one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions incorporated into the mesoporous natural fiber welded biopolymer   wherein the mesoporous natural fiber welded biopolymer comprises one or more of cellulose, chitin, chitosan, silk, keratin, or any other biopolymer or biopolymer material that is made mesoporous using natural fiber welding,
 wherein natural fiber welding is a process by which native, recycled, or combined biopolymer(s) is treated with ionic liquid to partially solvate the biopolymer and evolve a mesoporous material, and 
   wherein the one or more materials with nanoscale dimensions comprise nanoparticles, metal-organic frameworks, macromolecules, clays, or other materials with at least one dimension being measured at less than 100 nanometers.