@article{SHEN2026, 
author = {RuoYao SHEN and Ge QIU and Wei FANG and Yong YUAN and Hong LIU and HuaRong HUANG and ZhiYun DU and QiPeng YUAN},
title = {Efficient separation and purification of trans-ferulic acid in fermentation broth based on a sulfonated graphene oxide/molecularly imprinted polymer composite membrane},
year = {2026},
journal = {Journal of Beijing University of Chemical Technology (Natural Science Edition)},
volume = {53},
number = {1},
pages = {51-60},
keywords = {sulfonated graphene oxide, molecularly imprinted polymer, trans-ferulic acid, membrane separation, gradient elution},
url = {https://www.sciopen.com/article/10.13543/j.bhxbzr.2026.01.005},
doi = {10.13543/j.bhxbzr.2026.01.005},
abstract = {Trans-ferulic acid (TFA) is a natural phenolic acid compound with anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-tumor activities. Its efficient separation in complex biological fermentation broths is challenging. In this study, sulfonated graphene oxide (SGO)/molecularly imprinted polymers (MIP) composite membranes were prepared. Specific recognition sites were constructed using bifunctional monomers (methacrylic acid and acrylamide), and the membrane pore structure was regulated by non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS), which enabled efficient separation of TFA. The results show that the SGO/MIP composite membrane prepared with mass ratio of SGO:MIP:polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF):polyethylene glycol 2000 (pore-forming agent) of 0.9:0.225:12:0.72 has an adsorption capacity of 2249.31 mg/m2 for TFA in the fermentation broth at 25 ℃, and a membrane flux of 53.94 L/(m2·h), indicating that it maintains good permeation performance while efficiently retaining target molecules. After gradient elution with 10%-60% (volume fraction) ethanol and recrystallization, the purity of TFA was 96.4% and the recovery rate was 87.17%. This study shows that the selective adsorption capacity of target molecules is significantly improved by introducing SGO and bifunctional monomer strategies, which provides a new idea for the large-scale separation of natural products.}
}