A Structured Porous Hydrogel Adsorbent Reinforced by PP Nonwoven Fabric and PVA Short Fibers: Fabrication and Adsorption Properties

In this study, we fabricated a fibrous composite hydrogel material with microchannel structures for the adsorption of pollutants from wastewater. Leveraging the solid-to-liquid phase transition time differential of PVA short fibers and the porous structure of melt-blown nonwoven fabric, we constructed microchannels with varying size gradients for water transport within the hydrogel. This design accelerated water diffusion and enhanced pollutant adsorption efficiency. The results demonstrated that as the addition amount of PVA short fibers increased from 0% to 20%, the swelling ratio and maximum swelling ratio of the material increased, while the equilibrium adsorption time for pollutants was reduced by over 50 min. The Langmuir isotherm model revealed maximum adsorption capacities of 496.33 mg/g for Pb(II) and 297.35 mg/g for MB (Methylene Blue). Remarkably, the adsorption efficiency remained above 90% even under acidic conditions (low pH). Furthermore, after four consecutive adsorption-desorption cycles, the adsorption efficiency was maintained at over 88%. These findings indicate that this material exhibits significant potential for the efficient removal of aqueous pollutants, contributing to advancements in the field of adsorption science. Graphical A fibrous composite hydrogel with microchannel structures was fabricated for pollutant adsorption. PVA short fibers and melt-blown nonwoven fabric enabled rapid water transport, reducing equilibrium adsorption time by >50 min. Maximum Langmuir capacities reached 496.33 mg/g for Pb(II) and 297.35 mg/g for MB. Adsorption efficiency exceeded 90% at low pH and remained >88% after four cycles.