Conversion of plant polyphenols into high-value products and multi-disciplinary applications

<p indent="0mm">Plant polyphenols, known as tannins, are widely found in nature and are the fourth largest plant biomass resource after cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. For centuries, they have been used as tanning agents in the leather industry. However, less attention has been paid to developing polyphenols as high-value fine chemicals. The unique dihydroxyphenyl (catechol) or trihydroxyphenyl (galloyl) groups impart polyphenols with the capability to form multiple interactions with different substrates. Therefore, metal-phenolic networks constructed by coordinating plant polyphenols with metal ions emerge as a representative and new-emerging platform for surface modification of materials. This article provides a general introduction to the development history of polyphenol-based materials and the construction of new functional materials using plant polyphenols as building blocks in conjunction with the relevant work from our group, focusing on the strength of the surface/interface mass transfer through microporous pores and the mass transfer regulation through heterogeneous biological tissues. Besides, this article emphasizes the application in adsorption of heavy and precious metal ions, removal of emerging contaminants, drug delivery, and cell therapy.