Future Energy and Innovation Laboratory, Central European Institute of Technology, Brno University of Technology, Purkyňova 656/123, Brno, CZ-616 00, Czech Republic.
Center for Advanced Functional Nanorobots, University of Chemistry and Technology Prague, Technická 5, Prague 6, 166 28, Czech Republic.
Small. 2024 Jun;20(26):e2306943. doi: 10.1002/smll.202306943. Epub 2024 Jan 18.
The growing consumption of drugs of abuse together with the inefficiency of the current wastewater treatment plants toward their presence has resulted in an emergent class of pollutants. Thus, the development of alternative approaches to remediate this environmental threat is urgently needed. Microrobots, combining autonomous motion with great tunability for the development of specific tasks, have turned into promising candidates to take on the challenge. Here, hybrid urchin-like hematite (α-FeO) microparticles carrying magnetite (FeO) nanoparticles and surface functionalization with organic β-cyclodextrin (CD) molecules are prepared with the aim of on-the-fly encapsulation of illicit drugs into the linked CD cavities of moving microrobots. The resulting mag-CD microrobots are tested against methamphetamine (MA), proving their ability for the removal of this psychoactive substance. A dramatically enhanced capture of MA from water with active magnetically powered microrobots when compared with static passive CD-modified particles is demonstrated. This work shows the advantages of enhanced mass transfer provided by the externally controlled magnetic navigation in microrobots that together with the versatility of their design is an efficient strategy to clean polluted waters.
滥用药物的消费不断增长，加上当前废水处理厂对其存在的处理效率低下，导致了一类新兴的污染物的出现。因此，迫切需要开发替代方法来修复这种环境威胁。微机器人结合了自主运动和针对特定任务的高度可调节性，已成为应对这一挑战的有前途的候选者。在这里，带有四氧化三铁 (FeO) 纳米颗粒的混合海胆状赤铁矿 (α-FeO) 微颗粒，表面用有机 β-环糊精 (CD) 分子进行功能化，目的是将非法药物即时封装到移动微机器人的连接 CD 腔室中。制备得到的磁-CD 微机器人被用于检测甲基苯丙胺 (MA)，证明了它们去除这种精神活性物质的能力。与静态的被动 CD 修饰粒子相比，通过主动磁力驱动的微机器人从水中显著增强了 MA 的捕获。这项工作展示了外部控制的磁导航在微机器人中提供的增强传质的优势，以及其设计的多功能性，这是一种清洁受污染水的有效策略。
