Synthesis of N-vinylpyrrolidone and acrylonitrile derived stiff crosslinked copolymer using high pressure for its application in reversible dye adsorption and antimicrobial activities

• Published in: Materials today communications 2022-06, Vol.31, p.103826, Article 103826
• Main Authors: Upadhyaya, Samiran, Gogoi, Gautomi, Kumar, Arun, Khan, Mojibur Rahman, Sen Sarma, Neelotpal
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2352-4928; 2352-4928
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mtcomm.2022.103826

This work reports the synthesis of a rigid crosslinked multifunctional polymer using high pressure. The synthesized polymer was characterized using various spectroscopic techniques, such as Fourier Transformed Infrared spectroscopy, thermo-gravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, and optical and electrical microscopic techniques. The swelling tests of the polymer were conducted in water at different temperatures and also in presence of other organic and inorganic solvents. The polymer could be efficiently used for the selective adsorption of cationic dyes, viz. methylene blue, fuchsin basic, and rhodamine B, with a maximum adsorption efficiency of 96.7 %. The dye adsorption was found to obey the pseudo-first-order kinetics, following the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. The dye adsorption could be assumed to be due to the electrostatic interaction of the polymer with the dye, leading to the physisorption phenomena, confirmed via various spectroscopic and analytical methods. The adsorption was found to be the highest in the neutral pH range. The dye desorption was also examined and 70 % desorption was observed in less than 24 h. In addition, the adsorptions of the dyes were also confirmed via computational analysis using the density functional theory. The computational analysis correlates with the experimental findings and confirms the physisorption of the dyes on the surface of the polymer. In addition, the polymer could also be used as an antimicrobial agent, showing more than 99 % of microbes killing efficiency within 8 h of the incubation period. [Display omitted] •Presented polymer was synthesized under high-pressure leading to the formation of a stiff, highly cross-linked material.•The synthesized polymer could efficiently and selectively adsorb cationic dyes, with an adsorption efficiency of 96.7 %.•Computational study using DFT confirms the experimental observation of cationic dye adsorption.•The polymer shows 99 % microbes killing efficiency within 8 h of incubation, can be used as an effective antimicrobial agent.