Liquid hydrocarbon separation membranes: mechanistic insight, material design and microenvironment engineering

Liquid hydrocarbon separation is in great demand in the modern petrochemical industry. Membrane-based liquid hydrocarbon separation has emerged as a next-generation technology with great potential to address energy and environmental challenges, representing one of the most rapidly evolving and demanding frontiers. Despite its promise to revolutionize energy-intensive processes, practical application remains hindered by the complexity of liquid hydrocarbon mixtures and the stringent requirements on membrane materials. In this review, microenvironment engineering is employed as the central concept to establish an integrated chain linking molecular transport mechanisms, material design, and industrial applications of liquid hydrocarbon separation membranes (LHSMs). Based on the molecular transmembrane transport mechanisms, we identify typical microenvironments in LHSMs and systematically classify liquid hydrocarbon separations into coarse, precise, and ultrafine regimes. This mechanism-based understanding of membrane microenvironments and separation regimes represents the first unified classification framework for LHSMs. Furthermore, we highlight membrane microenvironment engineering as a critical bridge connecting advanced membrane materials with practical separation performance. In particular, we propose the efficient management of membrane microenvironments, which enables the reproducibility and scalability of membrane fabrication while ensuring effective separation performance. Moreover, emerging techniques for microenvironment engineering are discussed, including in situ and operando monitoring techniques, as well as machine learning/artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted microenvironment engineering. Finally, future directions are outlined, including deeper mechanistic understanding, scalable membrane fabrication and process integration, LHSM-specific fouling understanding, and operando- and data-driven microenvironment engineering. Collectively, this review provides a coherent roadmap for the rational design and practical implementation of next-generation membranes for sustainable liquid hydrocarbon separations.