Sol-modified sintering-induced mesoporous polytetrafluoroethylene/poly(acrylic acid-co-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) composite fiber as an adsorbent with high adsorption capacity for dyes

An extremely spinnable polymer, poly (acrylic acid-co-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (P(AA-co-HEMA)), was used as a carrier to facilitate the formation of wet-spun polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) fiber. A simple technique combining sol modification with sintering treatment was then applied to process the wet-spun fiber into hydrophobic composite fiber with large numbers of mesopores and water-wettable sites. Due to the well-developed porous structure and essential hydrophilic feature, the composite fiber exhibited an outstanding capability to adsorb methylene blue (MB) from water. The research results showed that the maximum adsorption capacity of composite fiber for MB can reach to 155.75 mg/g. At each cycle, 0.05 g composite fiber can remove 90% of MB from 10 mL fresh MB solution with a concentration of 20 mg/L within 90 min by adsorption, manifesting the high efficiency of obtained composite fiber. In addition to MB, the composite fiber also showed a great capability to adsorb other dyes within a short time. Therefore, it is believable that the prepared fiber will gain a broad attention in the field of dye wastewater treatment. [Display omitted] •Wet spinning of PTFE is achieved with P(AA-co-HEMA) as a wet-spinnable carrier.•The loss of substances induced by sintering leads to the formation of mesopores.•Sol modification creates hydrophilic points for hydrophobic mesoporous PTFE fiber.•Local hydrophilicity and porous structure make PTFE fiber a good adsorbent for dyes.