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Filtration

Filtration

Filtration is a physical separation process that involves passing a suspension through a porous medium to separate solids from fluids. During filtration, solids collect on the porous medium while liquids, also collectively known as the filtrate, pass through. The filtration medium is selected based on the filtration purpose, quantity, and nature of the precipitate. The general criteria for a suitable filtering medium are that it is inert, mechanically strong, nonabsorbent toward dissolved...

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Luke Skala¹, James K Johnson¹, Danielle Nachman¹

¹Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, 11100 Johns Hopkins Road, Laurel, Maryland 20723, USA.

The Journal of Chemical Physics

|May 16, 2025

Summary

Shorter polyethylene glycol (PEG) segments on silane-functionalized membranes improve per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) capture, especially for short-chain contaminants. This molecular design enhances filter performance in PFAS-contaminated water.

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Area of Science:

Materials Science
Environmental Engineering
Chemical Engineering

Background:

Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are persistent environmental contaminants.
Functionalized membranes are crucial for effective PFAS removal from water.
Optimizing molecular design of functionalization agents is key to improving filtration performance.

Purpose of the Study:

To synthesize and test novel silane molecules with varying polyethylene glycol (PEG) segment lengths for membrane functionalization.
To evaluate the impact of PEG segment length on the capture efficiency of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl species (PFAS) from contaminated water.
To elucidate the molecular interactions governing PFAS capture using experimental and computational methods.

Main Methods:

Synthesis of amphiphilic silane molecules with varied PEG segment lengths.
Dynamic filtration experiments using aluminum-oxide hydroxide membranes functionalized with silanes.
Molecular dynamics simulations with metadynamics sampling to determine free-energy interaction profiles.

Main Results:

Membranes functionalized with silanes featuring shorter PEG segments demonstrated superior performance in capturing PFAS, particularly short-chain variants.
Molecular dynamics simulations revealed that PEG length influences PFAS-brush interaction strength and surface coating density.
Both experimental and simulation data indicated that molecular architecture and membrane processing significantly impact overall filter performance.

Conclusions:

The length of the polyethylene glycol (PEG) segment in silane functionalization agents is a critical factor for optimizing membrane performance in PFAS removal.
A shorter PEG segment enhances the capture of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl species (PFAS), especially low molecular-weight ones.
Combined experimental and simulation approaches provide valuable insights into designing advanced materials for effective contaminant remediation.