Abstract
Ultrathin and/or ultrasmooth selective layer is one of the paramount goals in membrane realm for maximizing separation efficiency and/or minimizing fouling tendency. Towards this goal, the architecture of hydrogel selective layer is finely tuned for the first time for improving engineered osmosis (EO) membrane performance. Through delicately controlling synthesis parameters, ultrathin selective layer as thin as 30 nm, and ultrasmooth selective layer with sub-1 nm roughness (the smoothest EO membrane in literature) are successfully synthesized respectively. Analysis of reverse osmosis (RO) experimental results reveals hydrogel layer resistance to water permeation is linearly reduced by 1.40 × 1013 m−1 as the layer is tailored thinner per 10 nm, which leads to the remarkable enhancement of water permeability by ~10 times from 0.49 L m−2 h−1 bar−1 of 500 nm thickness to 4.75 L m−2 h−1 bar−1 of 30 nm thickness. Pressure-retarded osmosis (PRO) and forward osmosis (FO) tests indicate 45-nm-thick hydrogel layer achieves the maximum separation efficiency in terms of specific water flux (JW/JS). Moreover, the mechanism for tuning hydrogel layer architecture is discussed on the basis of microscopic characterizations. This study sheds new light on ultrathin and ultrasmooth selective layer for promoting EO membrane to smartly tackle different kinds of wastewater.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 117370 |
| Journal | Journal of Membrane Science |
| Volume | 592 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 15 Dec 2019 |
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Keywords
- Engineered osmosis
- Hydrogel membrane
- Thin-film composite structure
- Ultrasmooth selective layer
- Ultrathin selective layer
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biochemistry
- Materials Science(all)
- Physical and Theoretical Chemistry
- Filtration and Separation
Cite this
Fine-tuning selective layer architecture of hydrogel membrane towards high separation performances for engineered osmosis. / Qin, Detao; Liu, Zhaoyang; Bai, Hongwei; Song, Xiaoxiao; Li, Zhengtao; Sun, Darren Delai.
In: Journal of Membrane Science, Vol. 592, 117370, 15.12.2019.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Fine-tuning selective layer architecture of hydrogel membrane towards high separation performances for engineered osmosis
AU - Qin, Detao
AU - Liu, Zhaoyang
AU - Bai, Hongwei
AU - Song, Xiaoxiao
AU - Li, Zhengtao
AU - Sun, Darren Delai
PY - 2019/12/15
Y1 - 2019/12/15
N2 - Ultrathin and/or ultrasmooth selective layer is one of the paramount goals in membrane realm for maximizing separation efficiency and/or minimizing fouling tendency. Towards this goal, the architecture of hydrogel selective layer is finely tuned for the first time for improving engineered osmosis (EO) membrane performance. Through delicately controlling synthesis parameters, ultrathin selective layer as thin as 30 nm, and ultrasmooth selective layer with sub-1 nm roughness (the smoothest EO membrane in literature) are successfully synthesized respectively. Analysis of reverse osmosis (RO) experimental results reveals hydrogel layer resistance to water permeation is linearly reduced by 1.40 × 1013 m−1 as the layer is tailored thinner per 10 nm, which leads to the remarkable enhancement of water permeability by ~10 times from 0.49 L m−2 h−1 bar−1 of 500 nm thickness to 4.75 L m−2 h−1 bar−1 of 30 nm thickness. Pressure-retarded osmosis (PRO) and forward osmosis (FO) tests indicate 45-nm-thick hydrogel layer achieves the maximum separation efficiency in terms of specific water flux (JW/JS). Moreover, the mechanism for tuning hydrogel layer architecture is discussed on the basis of microscopic characterizations. This study sheds new light on ultrathin and ultrasmooth selective layer for promoting EO membrane to smartly tackle different kinds of wastewater.
AB - Ultrathin and/or ultrasmooth selective layer is one of the paramount goals in membrane realm for maximizing separation efficiency and/or minimizing fouling tendency. Towards this goal, the architecture of hydrogel selective layer is finely tuned for the first time for improving engineered osmosis (EO) membrane performance. Through delicately controlling synthesis parameters, ultrathin selective layer as thin as 30 nm, and ultrasmooth selective layer with sub-1 nm roughness (the smoothest EO membrane in literature) are successfully synthesized respectively. Analysis of reverse osmosis (RO) experimental results reveals hydrogel layer resistance to water permeation is linearly reduced by 1.40 × 1013 m−1 as the layer is tailored thinner per 10 nm, which leads to the remarkable enhancement of water permeability by ~10 times from 0.49 L m−2 h−1 bar−1 of 500 nm thickness to 4.75 L m−2 h−1 bar−1 of 30 nm thickness. Pressure-retarded osmosis (PRO) and forward osmosis (FO) tests indicate 45-nm-thick hydrogel layer achieves the maximum separation efficiency in terms of specific water flux (JW/JS). Moreover, the mechanism for tuning hydrogel layer architecture is discussed on the basis of microscopic characterizations. This study sheds new light on ultrathin and ultrasmooth selective layer for promoting EO membrane to smartly tackle different kinds of wastewater.
KW - Engineered osmosis
KW - Hydrogel membrane
KW - Thin-film composite structure
KW - Ultrasmooth selective layer
KW - Ultrathin selective layer
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85070723537&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85070723537&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.memsci.2019.117370
DO - 10.1016/j.memsci.2019.117370
M3 - Article
VL - 592
JO - Journal of Membrane Science
JF - Journal of Membrane Science
SN - 0376-7388
M1 - 117370
ER -