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Updated: Jun 9, 2026

Electrophoretic Crystallization of Ultrathin High-performance Metal-organic Framework Membranes
Published on: August 16, 2018
Ultrathin Magnesium-Ion Selective COF Membranes for Efficient Osmotic Power and Iontronic Logic Control
Lixue Yang1,2, Yixin Xu3, Yan Du1,4
1Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, P. R. China.
None:
Magnesium ions (Mg2+), vital for biological signaling and energy regulation, remain challenging to selectively and efficiently transport using artificial membranes, which typically lack molecular recognition and confined ion channels. Here, we report a β-ketoenamine covalent organic framework (TAPA-TFP COF) membrane that achieves near-ideal Mg2+ selectivity (t+ = 0.98) and ultrafast transport through ordered 13.6 Å nanochannels. Structural and molecular dynamics analyses reveal that the precisely arranged O/N coordination sites within the porous nanochannels partially strip the Mg2+ hydration shell, while C = O···H─O─H hydrogen-bond networks lower migration barriers, enabling high permeability. The ultrathin, large-area, and defect-free membrane delivers record osmotic power and current densities of 636.64 W m-2 and 9213.3 A m-2 under a 500-fold salinity gradient. Beyond efficient power generation, the Mg2+-selective nanochannels enable iontronic transistors, logic operations, and multimodal signal transduction, establishing a molecularly engineered porous platform that integrates ion-specific transport with energy conversion and information processing.
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