Ionic Functionalized Magnetic Porous Polymers as Advanced Materials for High-Efficiency Water Decontamination: Bactericidal and Iodine Adsorption

The relentless exploration of environmentally friendly remediation materials for high-efficiency killing of bacteria and capture of radioactive iodine from water is an eternal mutual topic among both academia and industry. Herein, a magnetic ionic porous organic polymer (iFP-POP) featuring sustainable and recyclable capacity was prepared via the “multivariate” strategy combined with subsequent postsynthesis modification and served as an advanced material to purify polluted water. The iFP-POP with an ultrafine magnetic γ-Fe2O3 core and a hierarchical porous polymer layer was prepared via a facile and scalable synthesis strategy, in which γ-Fe2O3 was formed directly during the coupling reaction. The iFP-POP featured abundant binding sites for I2, including highly polar heteroatoms, quaternary ammonium ionic groups, magnetic γ-Fe2O3, and electronegative cyclopentadiene, simultaneously, and presented ultrahigh I2 capture capacities. Notably, iFP-POP recovered easily and rapidly from various solutions by using a magnet, which could be easily regenerated with almost no performance degradation. The unique structure endowed prominent antimicrobial activity to iFP-POP to act as a broad-spectrum bactericide. In vitro assay demonstrated that iFP-POP displays a cation-enhanced photothermal antibacterial effect toward both Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus (99.93%) and Gram-negative Escherichia coli (94.99%). Furthermore, the encapsulation of I2 endowed iFP-POP with the diffusion antibacterial effect, allowing iFP-POP to act as a recyclable antibacterial material. This work proposes inspiring information for the rational design and controllable fabrication of targeted POP-based materials for environmental pollution management.