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Turing Membranes Regulated by Intermolecular Hydrogen Bonding for Molecular Sieving
Pengjia Dou1, Linghao Liu1, Qian Sun1
1State Key Laboratory of Advanced Environmental Technology, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
ACS Nano
|June 12, 2025
Summary
Crown ethers like DA18C6 control nanofiltration membrane structure by inhibiting piperazine diffusion during fabrication. This enhances water permeance and molecular sieving capabilities.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Chemical Engineering
- Membrane Science
Background:
- Membrane technology is crucial for efficient separation processes.
- Controlling membrane microstructure is key to optimizing performance.
- Nanofiltration (NF) membranes require precise control over permselectivity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the use of crown ethers (18-crown-6 and diaza-18-crown-6) for controlling NF membrane microstructure and permselectivity.
- To understand the role of hydrogen-bonding interactions in interfacial polymerization.
- To develop a strategy for enhancing NF membrane performance.
Main Methods:
- Incorporation of 18-crown-6 (18C6) or diaza-18-crown-6 (DA18C6) during interfacial polymerization.
- Utilizing computational analysis to study hydrogen-bonding interactions.
- Characterizing membrane microstructure, hydrophilicity, and microporosity.
- Evaluating water permeance and sodium sulfate (Na2SO4) rejection.
Main Results:
- Crown ethers decelerated piperazine diffusion, leading to thinner polyamide layers.
- Diffusion-driven instability generated nanoscale striped Turing patterns.
- DA18C6 exhibited stronger hydrogen-bonding interactions and superior diffusion inhibition.
- Modified membranes showed improved hydrophilicity and microporosity.
- Water permeance increased by up to 115% with DA18C6, while Na2SO4 rejection was maintained.
- DA18C6-modified membranes demonstrated narrowed pore size distribution.
Conclusions:
- Crown ethers offer a straightforward strategy for fine-tuning NF membrane microstructure.
- Hydrogen-bonding interactions are critical for controlling diffusion and pattern formation.
- Optimized membrane properties lead to enhanced water flux and precise molecular sieving.
- This work provides fundamental insights into diffusion-mediated membrane fabrication.
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