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It is very appealing to synthesize functional soft materials from natural and abundant plant diterpenes because they have conformationally rigid and chiral properties. Herein, dehydroabietic-based monoamide (DA-1) and diamide (DA-2) were designed by introducing device interactions, π–π stacking and hydrogen bonding, with an aromatic group, CO, and N–H. DA-1 and DA-2 can be gelled in a mixed solvent and a single solvent, respectively. Several novel supramolecular organic gels including highly entangled three-dimensional networks composed of rods or fibers were constructed. Interestingly, DA-2 forms a helical structure that is right-handed under the cooperative control of the solvent and the rigid structure of rosin. Gel formation was primarily driven by hydrogen bonding, π–π stacking, and van der Waals force. Combined with Gaussian calculation and X-ray diffraction (XRD), we established pack patterns for each system, revealing the roles played by rosin and amide groups. Moreover, the carbon tetrachloride gel of DA-2 can effectively remove Congo red in an aqueous solution, and the removal rate can reach 98.4%. This research explores an efficient organic gel for adsorbing Congo red dye with the secretions of pine trees.

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A series of polyimide/SnO2 hybrid membranes supported on TiO2/kieselguhr-mullite were prepared from polyimide with a large amount of carboxyl and SnO2 sol via a sol-gel process. The SnO2 phase chemically linked with the polyimide through the pendant carboxyl along the polyimide. The hybrid membranes were highly homogeneous, and when the SnO2 contents reached 15wt% the SnO2 phase was observed as particles with a diameter of 5 nm dispersed in the hybrid membranes . The cross-linking between the SnO2 phase and polyimide effectively enhanced the glass temperature of the hybrid films. With the increasing of the SnO2 contents, the pore sizes of the membranes decreased, and their pore sizes were mainly focused on 3.8, 3.1, 2.8 and 2.4 nm. The hybrid membranes showed higher permeability for H2, CO2, CO and H2O when compared to the pure polyimide. The separation factors of the polyimide/SnO2 hybrid membranes with 15wt% SnO2 content for H2/N2, CO2/N2, CO/N2 and H2O/N2 were 54.1, 30.2, 35.9 and 40.1, respectively.