Biomimetic mercury immobilization by selenium functionalized polyphenylene sulfide fabric

Highly efficient decontamination of elemental mercury (Hg 0 ) remains an enormous challenge for public health and ecosystem protection. The artificial conversion of Hg 0 into mercury chalcogenides could achieve Hg 0 detoxification and close the global mercury cycle. Herein, taking inspiration from the bio-detoxification of mercury, in which selenium preferentially converts mercury from sulfoproteins to HgSe, we propose a biomimetic approach to enhance the conversion of Hg 0 into mercury chalcogenides. In this proof-of-concept design, we use sulfur-rich polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) as the Hg 0 transporter. The relatively stable, sulfur-linked aromatic rings result in weak adsorption of Hg 0 on the PPS rather than the formation of metastable HgS. The weakly adsorbed mercury subsequently migrates to the adjacent selenium sites for permanent immobilization. The sulfur-selenium pair affords an unprecedented Hg 0 adsorption capacity and uptake rate of 1621.9 mg g −1 and 1005.6 μg g −1 min −1 , respectively, which are the highest recorded values among various benchmark materials. This work presents an intriguing concept for preparing Hg 0 adsorbents and could pave the way for the biomimetic remediation of diverse pollutants.