Donghua University

About: Donghua University is a education organization based out in Shanghai, China. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Fiber & Nanofiber. The organization has 21155 authors who have published 21841 publications receiving 393091 citations. The organization is also known as: Dōnghuá Dàxué & China Textile University.

Stimulus responsive nanogels for drug delivery

Abstract: Stimulus responsive nanogels are polymeric nanoparticles which are capable of responding to external stimuli by changing their physico-chemical properties, such as volume, water content, refractive index, permeability, and hydrophilicity–hydrophobicity. Compared with other polymer nanoparticles used for drug delivery, stimulus responsive nanogels are noted for their ability to encapsulate bioactive drugs, their high stability for prolonged circulation in the blood stream, and their controlled release and site-specific targeting of loaded drugs modulated by environment stimuli. Particularly, the application of stimulus responsive nanogels provides an interesting opportunity for drug delivery in which the delivery system becomes an active participant, rather than a passive carrier, in the optimization of disease therapy. In this article, the authors review the recent developments in the preparation and application in drug delivery of stimulus responsive nanogels which can respond to small temperature and pH changes, light, magnetic field, biomolecule recognition (specifically glucose responsive nanogels for insulin delivery), and multi-responsive nanogels. The limitations and future improvements of stimulus responsive nanogels are also discussed.

Origami-inspired active graphene-based paper for programmable instant self-folding walking devices.

Abstract: Origami-inspired active graphene-based paper with programmed gradients in vertical and lateral directions is developed to address many of the limitations of polymer active materials including slow response and violent operation methods. Specifically, we used function-designed graphene oxide as nanoscale building blocks to fabricate an all-graphene self-folding paper that has a single-component gradient structure. A functional device composed of this graphene paper can (i) adopt predesigned shapes, (ii) walk, and (iii) turn a corner. These processes can be remote-controlled by gentle light or heating. We believe that this self-folding material holds potential for a wide range of applications such as sensing, artificial muscles, and robotics.

Superhydrophilic and underwater superoleophobic nanofibrous membrane with hierarchical structured skin for effective oil-in-water emulsion separation

Abstract: A novel superhydrophilic and underwater superoleophobic nanofibrous membrane with a hierarchical structured skin for the separation of oil-in-water emulsions was prepared via electrospinning and electrospraying methods, and was found to exhibit excellent separation efficiency, robust antifouling properties, and extremely high flux solely driven by gravity.

AgBr-Ag-Bi2WO6 nanojunction system: A novel and efficient photocatalyst with double visible-light active components

Abstract: A semiconductor-based photocatalyst system, consisting of two visible-light-driven (VLD) components and one electron-transfer system, has a great potential to efficiently photocatalytically degrade pollutants. In this paper, we have reported a simple strategy for constructing an all-solid-state AgBr-Ag-Bi 2 WO 6 nanojunction by a facile deposition-precipitation method with Bi 2 WO 6 as the substrate. Two visible-light active components (AgBr, Bi 2 WO 6 ) and the electron-transfer system (Ag) are spatially fixed in this nanojunction system. Due to the presence of double visible-light active components, such a AgBr-Ag-Bi 2 WO 6 nanojunction system has the broadened visible-light photo-response range, and it also exhibits higher photocatalytic activity than photocatalysts containing single visible-light active component, such as Bi 2 WO 6 , Ag-Bi 2 WO 6 and AgBr-Ag-TiO 2 composite, for the degradation of the azo dye, Procion Red MX-5B and colorless pollutant pentachlorophenol. In addition, the initial dye concentration and pH value could greatly affect its photocatalytic activity, and the recycling experiments confirm that it is essentially stable during the photocatalytic process. In particular, the photocatalytic activity of AgBr-Ag-Bi 2 WO 6 nanojunction is superior to the sum of the activities of two individual photocatalysts (AgBr-Ag-TiO 2 and Bi 2 WO 6 ) that contain the same weight of AgBr or Bi 2 WO 6 , indicating the presence of a synergic effect between two visible-light active components in AgBr-Ag-Bi 2 WO 6 nanojunction. On the basis of the photocatalytic results and energy band diagram, the photocatalytic process that may have occurred on the AgBr-Ag-Bi 2 WO 6 nanojunction system is proposed; the vectorial electron transfer driven by the two-step excitation of both VLD components (AgBr and Bi 2 WO 6 ) contributes to its high photocatalytic activity. Therefore, this work provides some insight into the design of novel and efficient photocatalysts with multi-visible-light active components for enhancing VLD photocatalytic activity.