Organic–Inorganic Hybrid Membranes for Separation and Purification Applications

A special issue of Membranes (ISSN 2077-0375). This special issue belongs to the section "Membrane Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 November 2020) | Viewed by 38443

Special Issue Editors

Department of Environmental Engineering, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan
Interests: synthesis and fabrication of functional membrane; membrane reactor; membranes for energy and environmental applications; membrane processes for a circular economy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Department of Environmental Engineering, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, 402, Taiwan
Interests: developing nanoporous catalysts and their application in environmental engineering; fabrication of carbon molecular sieve membranes and polymer membrane and its application in environmental engineering; recycling of waste materials and energy; air pollution control technology; waste incineration (energy reutilization) technology; process simulation
Research Center for Membrane and Film Technology, Graduate School of Science, Technology and Innovation, Kobe University, 1-1, Rokkodai, Nada, Kobe 657-8501, Japan
Interests: inorganic membranes; gas separation; NF/RO/FO; transport mechanisms through micropores; molecular simulation on microporous membranes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The University of Sydney, Darlington, NSW 2006, Australia
Interests: membrane material design; engineering complex membranes and nanomaterials; inorganic and polymeric membranes for gas separation and catalytic membrane applications

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Organic–inorganic membranes have been highlighted as versatile methods for combining characteristics of both organic and inorganic membranes and may contribute to solving some of the separation problems associated with each of them. Currently, with the development of membrane technologies in gas separation, water treatment, the circular economy and other fields, the operational requirements and environmental regulations of membrane technologies are becoming more complex and stricter. To further expand its application in the separation and purification field, new hybrid molecules and materials design with interesting separation and purification properties have been proposed and developed recently.

This Special Issue on “Organic–Inorganic Hybrid Membranes for Separation and Purification Applications” of the journal Membranes seeks contributions to assess the state-of-the-art and future developments in the field of organic–inorganic membranes separation and purification applications. Topics include but are not limited to molecular design, organic–inorganic hybrid materials design and synthesis, transport phenomena/mechanisms, module and membrane reactor design, novel applications, and demonstration efforts and industrial exploitation. Authors are invited to submit their latest results; both original papers and reviews are welcome.

Prof. Dr. Hui-Hsin Tseng
Prof. Dr. Ahmad Fauzi Ismail
Prof. Dr. Ming-Yen Wey
Prof. Dr. Tomohisa Yoshioka
Dr. David K. Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Membranes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Nanocomposite membrane
  • Membrane reactor
  • Metal–organic framework membrane
  • Mixed matrix membrane
  • Organosilica membrane
  • Self-organized hybrid membrane materials
  • Dynamic site complexant membranes
  • Molecular recognition-based hybrid membranes
  • Separation and purification application, such as
    • Gas separation
    • Water treatment
    • Energy conversion
    • Hydrogen production
    • Forward osmosis
    • Desalination
    • Ion exchange
    • Other applications
  • Transport mechanism
  • Separation simulation

Published Papers (11 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 5262 KiB  
Article
Impacts of Green Synthesis Process on Asymmetric Hybrid PDMS Membrane for Efficient CO2/N2 Separation
by Guo-Liang Zhuang, Chao-Fong Wu, Ming-Yen Wey and Hui-Hsin Tseng
Membranes 2021, 11(1), 59; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes11010059 - 15 Jan 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3476
Abstract
The effects of green processes in hybrid polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membranes on CO2 separation have received little attention to date. The effective CO2 separation of the membranes is believed to be controlled by the reaction and curing process. In this study, hybrid [...] Read more.
The effects of green processes in hybrid polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membranes on CO2 separation have received little attention to date. The effective CO2 separation of the membranes is believed to be controlled by the reaction and curing process. In this study, hybrid PDMS membranes were fabricated on ceramic substrates using the water-in-emulsion method and evaluated for their gas transport properties. The effects of the tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) concentration and curing temperature on the morphology and CO2 separation performance were investigated. The viscosity measurement showed that, at specific reaction times, it is benefit beneficial to fabricate the symmetric hybrid PDMS membranes with a uniform and dense selective layer on the substrate. Moreover, the a high TEOS concentration can decrease the reaction time and obtain create the a fully crosslinked structure, allowing more efficient CO2/N2 separation. The separation performance was furtherly improved with in the membrane prepared at a high curing temperature of 120 °C. The developed membrane shows excellent CO2/N2 separation with a CO2 permeance of 27.7 ± 1.3 GPU and a CO2/N2 selectivity of 10.3 ± 0.3. Moreover, the membrane shows a stable gas separation performance of up to 5 bar of pressure. Full article
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13 pages, 2855 KiB  
Article
Tuning the Pore Structures of Organosilica Membranes for Enhanced Desalination Performance via the Control of Calcination Temperatures
by Rong Xu, Qian Liu, Xiuxiu Ren, Peng Lin and Jing Zhong
Membranes 2020, 10(12), 392; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10120392 - 03 Dec 2020
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1611
Abstract
Microporous organosilica membranes based on 1,2-bis(triethoxylsilyl)ethane (BTESE) were fabricated via an acid-catalyzed sol-gel technique. In the preparation process, the calcination temperature plays a significant role in structural and surface properties of the organosilica networks. With an increase in calcination temperature, the surface hydrophilicity [...] Read more.
Microporous organosilica membranes based on 1,2-bis(triethoxylsilyl)ethane (BTESE) were fabricated via an acid-catalyzed sol-gel technique. In the preparation process, the calcination temperature plays a significant role in structural and surface properties of the organosilica networks. With an increase in calcination temperature, the surface hydrophilicity decreased due to the enhanced condensation of Si-OH groups in the networks. N2 adsorption results suggest that the pore structures of BTESE membranes was clearly dependent on the calcination temperature. The pore sizes of the membranes were quantitatively determined by using the Normalized Knudsen-based permeance (NKP) model. In pervaporation tests, the membranes with higher calcination temperatures showed higher salt rejections and lower water permeances, which was attributed to the changes in pore size and surface chemistry of pore walls. The BTESE membranes calcined at 200 °C exhibited superior hydrothermal stability in temperature cycles up to 70 °C and high reproducibility in concentration cycles with NaCl concentrations of 0.2–13 wt%, showing great promise for desalination applications of high-salinity water. Full article
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20 pages, 6549 KiB  
Article
Solid-State EDLC Device Based on Magnesium Ion-Conducting Biopolymer Composite Membrane Electrolytes: Impedance, Circuit Modeling, Dielectric Properties and Electrochemical Characteristics
by Ahmad S. F. M. Asnawi, Shujahadeen B. Aziz, Salah R. Saeed, Yuhanees M. Yusof, Rebar T. Abdulwahid, Shakhawan Al-Zangana, Wrya O. Karim and Mohd. F. Z. Kadir
Membranes 2020, 10(12), 389; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10120389 - 02 Dec 2020
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 2304
Abstract
The polymer electrolyte based on Dx:Cs:Mg(CH3COO)2:Ni with three different glycerol concentrations have been prepared. The impedance study has verified that the electrolyte with 42 wt.% of glycerol (A3) has the highest ionic conductivity of 7.71 × 10−6 S [...] Read more.
The polymer electrolyte based on Dx:Cs:Mg(CH3COO)2:Ni with three different glycerol concentrations have been prepared. The impedance study has verified that the electrolyte with 42 wt.% of glycerol (A3) has the highest ionic conductivity of 7.71 × 10−6 S cm−1 at room temperature. The ionic conductivity is found to be influenced by the transport parameters. From the dielectric analysis, it was shown that the electrolytes in this system obeyed the non-Debye behavior. The A3 electrolyte exhibited a dominancy of ions (tion > te) with a breakdown voltage of 2.08 V. The fabricated electrochemical double layer capacitor (EDLC) achieved the specific capacitance values of 24.46 F/g and 39.68 F/g via the cyclic voltammetry (CV) curve and the charge–discharge profile, respectively. The other significant parameters to evaluate the performance of EDLC have been determined, such as internal resistance (186.80 to 202.27 Ω) energy density (4.46 Wh/kg), power density (500.58 to 558.57 W/kg) and efficiency (92.88%). Full article
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21 pages, 6672 KiB  
Article
Gas Permeation Characteristics of TiO2-ZrO2-Aromatic Organic Chelating Ligand (aOCL) Composite Membranes
by Takashi Tachibana, Tomohisa Yoshioka, Keizo Nakagawa, Takuji Shintani, Eiji Kamio and Hideto Matsuyama
Membranes 2020, 10(12), 388; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10120388 - 01 Dec 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1975
Abstract
Methyl gallate (MG) and ethyl ferulate (EF) with a benzene ring were separately used as aromatic organic chelating ligands (aOCLs) to prepare two versions of TiO2-ZrO2-aOCL composite sols via hydrolysis and polycondensation reactions with titanium(IV) isopropoxide (Ti(OC3H [...] Read more.
Methyl gallate (MG) and ethyl ferulate (EF) with a benzene ring were separately used as aromatic organic chelating ligands (aOCLs) to prepare two versions of TiO2-ZrO2-aOCL composite sols via hydrolysis and polycondensation reactions with titanium(IV) isopropoxide (Ti(OC3H7)4) and zirconium(IV) butoxide (Zr(OC4H9)4). Thermogravimetric and FT-IR analysis of dry gels revealed that aromatic rings were present in the residual organic matter when the gel was fired under nitrogen at 300 °C. In X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements, the TiO2-ZrO2 composite material prepared using these two aOCLs showed an amorphous structure with no crystalline peaks for TiO2 and ZrO2. In N2 adsorption/desorption measurements at 77 K, the TiO2-ZrO2 samples using the aOCLs as a template appeared porous with a larger specific surface area than TiO2-ZrO2 without aOCL. TiO2-ZrO2-aOCL composite membranes were prepared by coating and firing TiO2-ZrO2-aOCL sol onto a SiO2 intermediate layer using an α-alumina porous tube as a substrate. Compared with the TiO2-ZrO2 membrane, the TiO2-ZrO2-aOCL membranes had higher gas permselectivity. The TiO2-ZrO2-EF membrane showed a He permeance of 2.69 × 10−6 mol m−2 s−1 Pa−1 with permeance ratios of He/N2 = 10.6 and He/CF4 = 163, while the TiO2-ZrO2-MG membrane revealed a bit less He permeance at 8.56 × 10−7 mol m−2 s−1 Pa−1 with greater permeance ratios of He/N2 = 61.7 and He/CF4 = 209 at 200 °C. A microporous TiO2-ZrO2 amorphous structure was obtained by introducing aOCL. The differences in the side chains of each aOCL could possibly account for the differences in the microporous structures of the resultant TiO2-ZrO2-aOCL membranes. Full article
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13 pages, 3243 KiB  
Article
P84/ZCC Hollow Fiber Mixed Matrix Membrane with PDMS Coating to Enhance Air Separation Performance
by Nurul Widiastuti, Triyanda Gunawan, Hamzah Fansuri, Wan Norharyati Wan Salleh, Ahmad Fauzi Ismail and Norazlianie Sazali
Membranes 2020, 10(10), 267; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10100267 - 28 Sep 2020
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 2894
Abstract
This research introduces zeolite carbon composite (ZCC) as a new filler on polymeric membranes based on the BTDA-TDI/MDI (P84) co-polyimide for the air separation process. The separation performance was further improved by a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) coating to cover up the surface defect. The [...] Read more.
This research introduces zeolite carbon composite (ZCC) as a new filler on polymeric membranes based on the BTDA-TDI/MDI (P84) co-polyimide for the air separation process. The separation performance was further improved by a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) coating to cover up the surface defect. The incorporation of 1 wt% ZCC into P84 co-polyimide matrix enhanced the O2 permeability from 7.12 to 18.90 Barrer (2.65 times) and the O2/N2 selectivity from 4.11 to 4.92 Barrer (19.71% improvement). The PDMS coating on the membrane further improved the O2/N2 selectivity by up to 60%. The results showed that the incorporation of ZCC and PDMS coating onto the P84 co-polyimide membrane was able to increase the overall air separation performance. Full article
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19 pages, 4443 KiB  
Article
Hydrogen Selective SiCH Inorganic–Organic Hybrid/γ-Al2O3 Composite Membranes
by Miwako Kubo, Ryota Mano, Misako Kojima, Kenichi Naniwa, Yusuke Daiko, Sawao Honda, Emanuel Ionescu, Samuel Bernard, Ralf Riedel and Yuji Iwamoto
Membranes 2020, 10(10), 258; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10100258 - 25 Sep 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3102
Abstract
Solar hydrogen production via the photoelectrochemical water-splitting reaction is attractive as one of the environmental-friendly approaches for producing H2. Since the reaction simultaneously generates H2 and O2, this method requires immediate H2 recovery from the syngas including [...] Read more.
Solar hydrogen production via the photoelectrochemical water-splitting reaction is attractive as one of the environmental-friendly approaches for producing H2. Since the reaction simultaneously generates H2 and O2, this method requires immediate H2 recovery from the syngas including O2 under high-humidity conditions around 50 °C. In this study, a supported mesoporous γ-Al2O3 membrane was modified with allyl-hydrido-polycarbosilane as a preceramic polymer and subsequently heat-treated in Ar to deliver a ternary SiCH organic–inorganic hybrid/γ-Al2O3 composite membrane. Relations between the polymer/hybrid conversion temperature, hydrophobicity, and H2 affinity of the polymer-derived SiCH hybrids were studied to functionalize the composite membranes as H2-selective under saturated water vapor partial pressure at 50 °C. As a result, the composite membranes synthesized at temperatures as low as 300–500 °C showed a H2 permeance of 1.0–4.3 × 10−7 mol m−2 s−1 Pa−1 with a H2/N2 selectivity of 6.0–11.3 under a mixed H2-N2 (2:1) feed gas flow. Further modification by the 120 °C-melt impregnation of low molecular weight polycarbosilane successfully improved the H2-permselectivity of the 500 °C-synthesized composite membrane by maintaining the H2 permeance combined with improved H2/N2 selectivity as 3.5 × 10−7 mol m−2 s−1 Pa−1 with 36. These results revealed a great potential of the polymer-derived SiCH hybrids as novel hydrophobic membranes for purification of solar hydrogen. Full article
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18 pages, 7726 KiB  
Article
ZrO2-TiO2 Incorporated PVDF Dual-Layer Hollow Fiber Membrane for Oily Wastewater Treatment: Effect of Air Gap
by Nurshahnawal Yaacob, Pei Sean Goh, Ahmad Fauzi Ismail, Noor Aina Mohd Nazri, Be Cheer Ng, Muhammad Nizam Zainal Abidin and Lukka Thuyavan Yogarathinam
Membranes 2020, 10(6), 124; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10060124 - 16 Jun 2020
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4413
Abstract
Dual-layer hollow fiber (DLHF) nanocomposite membrane prepared by co-extrusion technique allows a uniform distribution of nanoparticles within the membrane outer layer to enhance the membrane performance. The effects of spinning parameters especially the air gap on the physico-chemical properties of ZrO2-TiO [...] Read more.
Dual-layer hollow fiber (DLHF) nanocomposite membrane prepared by co-extrusion technique allows a uniform distribution of nanoparticles within the membrane outer layer to enhance the membrane performance. The effects of spinning parameters especially the air gap on the physico-chemical properties of ZrO2-TiO2 nanoparticles incorporated PVDF DLHF membranes for oily wastewater treatment have been investigated in this study. The zeta potential of the nanoparticles was measured to be around –16.5 mV. FESEM–EDX verified the uniform distribution of Ti, Zr, and O elements throughout the nanoparticle sample and the TEM images showed an average nanoparticles grain size of ~12 nm. Meanwhile, the size distribution intensity was around 716 nm. A lower air gap was found to suppress the macrovoid growth which resulted in the formation of thin outer layer incorporated with nanoparticles. The improvement in the separation performance of PVDF DLHF membranes embedded with ZrO2-TiO2 nanoparticles by about 5.7% in comparison to the neat membrane disclosed that the incorporation of ZrO2-TiO2 nanoparticles make them potentially useful for oily wastewater treatment. Full article
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17 pages, 5141 KiB  
Article
Development of Hydrophilic PVDF Membrane Using Vapour Induced Phase Separation Method for Produced Water Treatment
by Normi Izati Mat Nawi, Ho Min Chean, Norazanita Shamsuddin, Muhammad Roil Bilad, Thanitporn Narkkun, Kajornsak Faungnawakij and Asim Laeeq Khan
Membranes 2020, 10(6), 121; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10060121 - 16 Jun 2020
Cited by 74 | Viewed by 6518
Abstract
During the production of oil and gas, a large amount of oily wastewater is generated, which would pollute the environment if discharged without proper treatment. As one of the most promising treatment options, membrane material used for oily wastewater treatment should possess desirable [...] Read more.
During the production of oil and gas, a large amount of oily wastewater is generated, which would pollute the environment if discharged without proper treatment. As one of the most promising treatment options, membrane material used for oily wastewater treatment should possess desirable properties of high hydraulic performance combined with high membrane fouling resistance. This project employs the vapor induced phase separation (VIPS) technique to develop a hydrophilic polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane with polyethylene glycol (PEG) as an additive for produced water treatment. Results show that thanks to its slow nonsolvent intake, the VIPS method hinders additive leaching during the cast film immersion. The results also reveal that the exposure of the film to the open air before immersion greatly influences the structure of the developed membranes. By extending the exposure time from 0 to 30 min, the membrane morphology change from typical asymmetric with large macrovoids to the macrovoid-free porous symmetric membrane with a granular structure, which corresponds to 35% increment of steady-state permeability to 189 L·m−2h−1bar−1, while maintaining >90% of oil rejection. It was also found that more PEG content resides in the membrane matrix when the exposure time is extended, contributes to the elevation of surface hydrophilicity, which improves the membrane antifouling properties. Overall results demonstrate the potential of VIPS method for the fabrication of hydrophilic PVDF membrane by helping to preserve hydrophilic additive in the membrane matrices. Full article
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18 pages, 4158 KiB  
Article
Visible-Light Active Photocatalytic Dual Layer Hollow Fiber (DLHF) Membrane and Its Potential in Mitigating the Detrimental Effects of Bisphenol A in Water
by Roziana Kamaludin, Zatilfarihiah Rasdi, Mohd Hafiz Dzarfan Othman, Siti Hamimah Sheikh Abdul Kadir, Noor Shafina Mohd Nor, Jesmine Khan, Wan Nor I’zzah Wan Mohamad Zain, Ahmad Fauzi Ismail, Mukhlis A Rahman and Juhana Jaafar
Membranes 2020, 10(2), 32; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10020032 - 21 Feb 2020
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3548
Abstract
The presence of bisphenol A (BPA) in various water sources has potentially led to numerous adverse effects in human such as increased in blood pressure and derangement in liver function. Thus, a reliable treatment for the removing BPA is highly required. This present [...] Read more.
The presence of bisphenol A (BPA) in various water sources has potentially led to numerous adverse effects in human such as increased in blood pressure and derangement in liver function. Thus, a reliable treatment for the removing BPA is highly required. This present work aimed to study the efficiency of visible light driven photocatalytic dual-layer hollow fiber (DLHF) membrane for the removal of BPA from water and further investigated its detrimental effects by using an in-vivo model. The prepared membranes were characterized for their morphology, particles distribution, surface roughness, crystallinity and light absorption spectra. The removal of 81.6% and 86.7% in BPA concentration was achieved for N-doped TiO2 DLHF after 360 min of visible and UV light irradiation, respectively. No significant changes for all three groups were observed in liver function test meanwhile the rats-exposed to untreated BPA water shows significance blood pressure increment contrary to rats-exposed to treated BPA water. Similarly, the normal morphology in both jejunum and ileum were altered in rats-exposed to untreated BPA water group. Altogether, the presence of N-doped TiO2 in DLHF are shown to significantly enhance the photocatalytic degradation activity under visible irradiation, which effectively mitigates the effect of BPA in an in-vivo model. Full article
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Review

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39 pages, 6018 KiB  
Review
2D Nanocomposite Membranes: Water Purification and Fouling Mitigation
by Lara Loske, Keizo Nakagawa, Tomohisa Yoshioka and Hideto Matsuyama
Membranes 2020, 10(10), 295; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10100295 - 20 Oct 2020
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 3863
Abstract
In this study, the characteristics of different types of nanosheet membranes were reviewed in order to determine which possessed the optimum propensity for antifouling during water purification. Despite the tremendous amount of attention that nanosheets have received in recent years, their use to [...] Read more.
In this study, the characteristics of different types of nanosheet membranes were reviewed in order to determine which possessed the optimum propensity for antifouling during water purification. Despite the tremendous amount of attention that nanosheets have received in recent years, their use to render membranes that are resistant to fouling has seldom been investigated. This work is the first to summarize the abilities of nanosheet membranes to alleviate the effect of organic and inorganic foulants during water treatment. In contrast to other publications, single nanosheets, or in combination with other nanomaterials, were considered to be nanostructures. Herein, a broad range of materials beyond graphene-based nanomaterials is discussed. The types of nanohybrid membranes considered in the present work include conventional mixed matrix membranes, stacked membranes, and thin-film nanocomposite membranes. These membranes combine the benefits of both inorganic and organic materials, and their respective drawbacks are addressed herein. The antifouling strategies of nanohybrid membranes were divided into passive and active categories. Nanosheets were employed in order to induce fouling resistance via increased hydrophilicity and photocatalysis. The antifouling properties that are displayed by two-dimensional (2D) nanocomposite membranes also are examined. Full article
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27 pages, 2990 KiB  
Review
Dimensional Nanofillers in Mixed Matrix Membranes for Pervaporation Separations: A Review
by Guang Yang, Zongli Xie, Marlene Cran, Chunrui Wu and Stephen Gray
Membranes 2020, 10(9), 193; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/membranes10090193 - 19 Aug 2020
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 3639
Abstract
Pervaporation (PV) has been an intriguing membrane technology for separating liquid mixtures since its commercialization in the 1980s. The design of highly permselective materials used in this respect has made significant improvements in separation properties, such as selectivity, permeability, and long-term stability. Mixed-matrix [...] Read more.
Pervaporation (PV) has been an intriguing membrane technology for separating liquid mixtures since its commercialization in the 1980s. The design of highly permselective materials used in this respect has made significant improvements in separation properties, such as selectivity, permeability, and long-term stability. Mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs), featuring inorganic fillers dispersed in a polymer matrix to form an organic–inorganic hybrid, have opened up a new avenue to facilely obtain high-performance PV membranes. The combination of inorganic fillers in a polymer matrix endows high flexibility in designing the required separation properties of the membranes, in which various fillers provide specific functions correlated to the separation process. This review discusses recent advances in the use of nanofillers in PV MMMs categorized by dimensions including zero-, one-, two- and three-dimensional nanomaterials. Furthermore, the impact of the nanofillers on the polymer matrix is described to provide in-depth understanding of the structure–performance relationship. Finally, the applications of nanofillers in MMMs for PV separation are summarized. Full article
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