Porous, polyacrylonitrile-based, nanofibrous adsorbent fabricated by electroblow spinning for uranium recovery from seawater

초록

Porous polyacrylonitrile nanofibers (pPAN-NFs) were successfully fabricated via an electroblow spinning method that synergistically integrates electrospinning with blow spinning to enable the scalable production of uranium adsorbents. Following fiber formation, the sacrificial poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) was selectively removed to generate a porous architecture, and the nanofibers were subsequently functionalized with amidoxime groups to enhance uranyl ion affinity. The electroblow spinning process yielded a 2.5-fold increase in nanofiber production compared with conventional electrospinning within the same processing time, highlighting its superior productivity. The resulting pPAN-NFs exhibited a markedly increased surface area relative to nonporous counterparts, leading to enhanced adsorption performance with a 20% higher uranyl uptake, reaching 44.6 mg/g. Despite the presence of porous structures, the adsorption isotherm and kinetic analyses revealed that the Langmuir model and pseudo-second-order kinetics described the adsorption behavior, suggesting that monolayer adsorption and chemisorption were the predominant mechanisms. Importantly, seawater adsorption tests demonstrated the material's high selectivity for uranyl ions over competing vanadyl ions, confirming its robust adsorption capability under harsh, high-salinity conditions. Collectively, these results underscore the potential of the developed nanofibrous adsorbent as an efficient and scalable platform for sustainable uranium recovery from seawater, offering a promising pathway toward securing future nuclear energy resources.Graphic abstractPorous nanofibers were fabricated via electroblow spinning method with PVP removal, yielding high surface area and porosity. The adsorbents showed enhanced adsorption capacity because of the increased porosity. Uranium uptake was also confirmed in seawater

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