Bio-inspired adhesion: Fabrication of molecularly imprinted nanocomposite membranes by developing a hybrid organic–inorganic nanoparticles composite structure

●An imprint membrane with nanoparticles composite structure was first prepared.●Highly binding capacity and enhanced separation property are obtained.●Dopamine was first used for synthesizing molecularly imprinted nanocomposite membrane.●This special structure endowed the as-prepared membrane with excellent selectivity.

Inspired from the highly bioadhesive performance of mussel protein, a straightforward synthetic method for highly dense imprinting of artemisinin (Ars) was developed to prepare bio-inspired porous molecularly imprinted nanocomposite membranes (MINCMs). The key design for the successful synthesis of MINCMs is the formation of an organic–inorganic hybrid structure at the surface of polydopamine-modified regenerated cellulose membranes (PDA@RCMs). In this regard, the polydopamine coating surfaces could be used as a versatile platform for the further coating of inorganic nanoparticles. After a bio-inspired adhesion process, a larger active surface area and layered structure could be obtained at the surface of PDA@RCMs, hence promoting the preparation of the novel MINCMs with excellent perm-selectivity performance and regeneration ability. Moreover, the as-prepared MINCMs not only exhibited an outstanding adsorption capacity (54 mg g−1), but also showed an excellent perm-selectivity (separation factor β is 15.03) toward Ars, which is promising for Ars separation and purification.