Materials World Network: Hybrid Thiacalixarene-Silica Nano-Frits - A New Generation of Selective Nanoporous Membranes

这项工作是犹他大学和俄罗斯喀山州立大学的合作成果。这项工作是基于烧结二氧化硅胶体晶体（纳米熔块），目的是开发含有纳米级孔的膜，其表面被硫烷芳烃受体修饰。这些能够结合离子、小分子和生物大分子的受体将共价附着在纳米孔表面，这将产生具有选择性和环境响应性分子运输的纳米孔膜。美国和俄罗斯的团队分别在表面改性二氧化硅纳米多孔材料和噻吩杯芳烃合成领域拥有专业知识。这两个小组将在创造新型纳米多孔材料方面相互补充，这些材料将在分离和传感领域得到应用。此外，这项工作将具有共同的兴趣和重要性，因为两个小组将对研究做出同样的贡献，并将带来两套技能，否则将无法获得。两个团队之间的互动将使用网络基础设施。具体而言，将建立基础设施，使两个研究小组能够利用互联网和视频会议进行互动。在美国队和俄罗斯队所在地建造了两间会议室，并配备了视频会议和通过互联网进行面对面互动的设备。因此，每个月将举行联合会议，所有参与该项目的学生和研究人员都将参加。此外，这种基础设施将使在两个实验室工作的研究人员之间的日常交流成为可能，这将大大促进合作努力。此外，两个研究团队的学生每年将在对方大学进行一次延长（1-3个月）的停留。此外，每年还将举办一次高层交流访问，为期1-2周。这些访问将包括向研究小组和部门研讨会作正式报告，以及非正式的互动。所有这些互动将使两个合作小组的学生和研究人员接触到新的科学方法和方法，并将扩大他们的文化视野。该奖项由材料研究部和国际科学与工程办公室共同资助。

The work is a cooperative effort between the University of Utah and Kazan State University in Russia. The work is based on sintered silica colloidal crystals (nano-frits) with the goal of developing membranes containing nanoscale pores whose surface is modified with thiacalixarene receptors. These receptors, capable of binding ions, small molecules and biomacromolecules, will be covalently attached to the nanopore surface, which will produce nanoporous membranes with selective and environmentally responsive molecular transport. The US and Russian teams possess expertise in the fields of surface-modified silica nanoporous materials and synthesis of thiacalixarenes, respectively. The two groups will complement each other in creating new types of nanoporous materials that will find applications in separations and sensing. Furthermore, this work will be of mutual interest and importance as the two groups will contribute equally to the research and will bring to the table two sets of skills, otherwise not available.The interaction between the two teams will use cyberinfrastructure. Specifically, infrastructure will be built to enable the interaction between the two research groups using the Internet and videoconferencing. Two conference rooms, at the US and the Russian team locations, are built and equipped for videoconferencing and face-to-face interactions over the Internet. Thus, joint meetings will be conducted every month with the participation of all students and researchers involved in the project. Moreover, this infrastructure will enable everyday communication between researches working in two labs, which will greatly facilitate the cooperative effort. Also, students from both research teams will participate in one extended (1-3 months) stay each year in the counterpart university. In addition, exchange visits of senior participants will take place once a year for 1-2 weeks. These visits will include formal presentations to the research groups and departmental seminars, as well as informal interactions. All these interactions will expose the students and researchers in both cooperating groups to new scientific approaches and methods, and will widen their cultural horizons.This award is co-funded by the Division of Materials Research and the Office of International Science and Engineering.