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[Display omitted] • Hyperbranched phosphate groups were grafted onto electrospun nanofibers. • The proton transfer process could lead to the zwitterionic structures. • The fiber adsorbents exhibited excellent adsorption performance towards UO 2 2+. • The nanofibers also showed anti-bacterial adhesion and anti-protein adhesion. • The fiber adsorbents had good potential for the uranium extraction from seawater.. The development of efficient adsorbents with anti-biofouling properties for uranium extraction from seawater is highly attractive to meet the growing demands for energy. However, traditional fiber adsorbents still suffer from the challenge of weak binding energy, low functional group density, and inefficient antifouling ability. Herein, inspired by the structures of phospholipid, the bio-inspired zwitterionic phosphate groups were created onto the electrospun nanofibers to manipulate the affinity with uranium and the anti-biofouling property. Additionally, hyperbranched grafting reaction together with thin diameters of the fibers were applied to significantly improve the available density of functional groups. The constructed hyperbranched zwitterionic phosphate groups functionalized nanofiber adsorbents (ZP-PAN fibers) exhibited high distribution coefficient k d (7.38 × 106 mL/g) and large adsorption capacity (1294.0 mg g−1) in the uranium-spiked seawater, surpassing most of reported polymeric adsorbents. ZP-PAN fibers also showed good selectivity against competitive cations and stable reusability. Owing to their zwitterionic structures, ZP-PAN fibers had satisfactory anti-adhesive ability toward bacteria and protein. Consequently, the uranium could be effectively extracted by ZP-PAN fibers from natural seawater with the extraction capacity of 8.1 mg g−1 after contacting with seawater for 15 days. This work demonstrates a new functionalization selection for nanofiber materials and provides a promising adsorbent in the practical uranium extraction from seawater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Novel cationic electrospun nanofibers (NCE fibers) were designed and synthesized. • Specific anion traps with hydrophobic microenvironment were constructed. • NCE fibers exhibited fast kinetics and high uptake for ReO 4 −. • NCE fibers showed good removal depth and satisfying selectivity toward ReO 4 −. • The column adsorption was also conducted with the treatment capacity of 1540 BV. Developing cationic adsorbents for efficient radioactive pertechnetate (99TcO 4 −) removal from water is of great significance in both nuclear fuel management and nuclear-related environmental treatment fields. However, tremendous efforts should be taken to improve the comprehensive performance of the adsorbent materials. Herein, novel cationic electrospun nanofibers were synthesized via the blending electrospinning from the branched polyethylenimine based solution and the following quaternization reaction by benzyl bromide. Consequently, abundant specific anion traps with hydrophobic microenvironment were constructed on the fibers. The obtained fiber adsorbents were systematically investigated to remove perrhenate (ReO 4 −) ions (the nonradioactive surrogate for TcO 4 −), which exhibit satisfying adsorption performance in several aspects: high adsorption capacity (943 mg g−1), fast kinetics (30 min), good removal depth (distribution coefficient = 1.1 × 106 mL g−1), large dynamic column adsorption volume (1540 bed volume), and excellent ReO 4 − capture from solution with high ionic strength or acidity/alkalinity. The adsorption performance surpassed all macroscopic shapeable adsorbents and many powdery advanced porous materials, owing to their abundant adsorption sites, tailored anion traps and macroscopic fibrous structures. Overall, this work gives a useful insight into designing novel adsorbents for effective TcO 4 −/ReO 4 − capture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]