Functionalized graphene as a nanostructured membrane for removal of copper and mercury from aqueous solution: A molecular dynamics simulation study

Review of functionalized nano porous membranes for desalination and water purification: MD simulations perspective

Today, it is known that most of the water sources in the world are either drying out or contaminated. With the increasing population, the water demand is increasing drastically almost in every sector each year, which makes processes like water treatment and desalination one of the most critical environmental subjects of the future. Therefore, developing energy-efficient and faster methods are a must for the industry. Using functional groups on the membranes is known to be an effective way to develop shorter routes for water treatment. Accordingly, a review of nano-porous structures having functional groups used or designed for desalination and water treatment is presented in this study. A systematic scan has been conducted in the literature for the studies performed by molecular dynamics simulations. The selected studies have been classified according to membrane geometry, actuation mechanism, functionalized groups, and contaminant materials. Permeability, rejection rate, pressure, and temperature ranges are compiled for all of the studies examined. It has been observed that the pore size of a well-designed membrane should be small enough to reject contaminant molecules, atoms, or ions but wide enough to allow high water permeation. Adding functional groups to membranes is observed to affect the permeability and the rejection rate. In general, hydrophilic functional groups around the pores increase membrane permeability. In contrast, hydrophobic ones decrease the permeability. Besides affecting water permeation, the usage of charged functional groups mainly affects the rejection rate of ions and charged molecules.

Efficient Removal of Heavy Metals from Aqueous Solutions through Functionalized γ-Graphyne-1 Membranes under External Uniform Electric Fields: Insights from Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Carbon-based nanosheet membranes with functionalized pores have great potential as water treatment membranes. In this study, the separation of Hg²⁺ and Cu²⁺ as heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions using a functionalized γ-graphyne-1 nanosheet membrane is investigated by molecular dynamics simulations. The simulation systems consist of a γ-graphyne-1 nanosheet with -COOH or -NH₂ functional groups on the edge of pores placed in an aqueous solution containing CuCl₂ and HgCl₂. An external electric field is applied as a driving force across the membrane for the separation of heavy metal ions using these functionalized pores. The ion-membrane and water molecule-membrane interaction energies, the radial distribution function of cations, the retention time and permeation of ions through the membrane, the density profile of water and ions, and the hydrogen bond in the system are investigated, and these results reveal that the performance of -NH₂-functionalized γ-graphyne-1 is better than that of -COOH-functionalized γ-graphyne-1 in the separation of Cu²⁺, while the Hg²⁺ cations encounter a high energy barrier as they pass through the membrane, especially in the -COOH-functionalized pore, due to their larger ionic radius and the smaller pore size of this membrane.

Graphene Oxide-Based Nanofiltration for Hg Removal from Wastewater: A Mini Review

Mercury (Hg) is one of heavy metals with the highest toxicity and negative impact on the biological functions of living organisms. Therefore, many studies are devoted to solving the problem of Hg separation from wastewater. Membrane-based separation techniques have become more preferable in wastewater treatment area due to their ease of operation, mild conditions and also more resistant to toxic pollutants. This technique is also flexible and has a wide range of possibilities to be integrated with other techniques. Graphene oxide (GO) and derivatives are materials which have a nanostructure can be used as a thin and flexible membrane sheet with high chemical stability and high mechanical strength. In addition, GO-based membrane was used as a barrier for Hg vapor due to its nano-channels and nanopores. The nano-channels of GO membranes were also used to provide ion mobility and molecule filtration properties. Nowadays, this technology especially nanofiltration for Hg removal is massively explored. The aim of the review paper is to investigate Hg removal using functionalized graphene oxide nanofiltration. The main focus is the effectiveness of the Hg separation process.

Fabrication of PVA coated PES/PVDF nanocomposite membranes embedded with in situ formed magnetite nanoparticles for removal of metal ions from aqueous solutions

An in situ procedure for the preparation of a coated nanocomposite membrane containing a complexing agent.

Preparation of functionalized graphene oxide and its application as a nanoadsorbent for Hg(2+) removal from aqueous solution

A poly(allyl acetoacetate)-grafted graphene oxide (GO-GAA) was successfully synthesized using Hummer's method by divinyl sulfone modification and allyl acetoacetate polymerizaton. This novel functionalized graphene oxide was characterized thoroughly by FTIR, XRD, FE-SEM, TEM, and TG-DT analyses. GO-GAA was then employed as an adsorbent for Hg(2+) removal from aqueous solutions. It exhibited higher adsorption capacity with regard to the pristine graphene oxide because of its effective functionalities, especially the dicarbonyl groups which are significant chelating agents. The effects of pH, temperature, and contact time on Hg(2+) adsorption were also investigated. The optimum Hg(2+) adsorption was obtained at pH 4 and T = 20-30 °C. The adsorption isotherm and kinetics were found to follow the Langmuir and pseudo-second-order models, respectively, with a correlation coefficient of 0.99 for both. The calculated maximum adsorption capacity of the adsorbent was 282.7 mg Hg(2+) per unit mass of GO-GAA, which is much more than 56 mg/g of that obtained for GO. The results showed that adsorption reaches up to 95 % of its maximum in less than 2 min. The synthesized GO-GAA as a novel and efficient adsorbent has been regenerated by HNO3 and reused. It retained its performance for Hg(2+) removal for several times and a less than 5 % decrease in removal efficiency was observed after four cycles of adsorption-desorption.

Molecular dynamics simulation of non-covalent single-walled carbon nanotube functionalization with surfactant peptides

Non-covalent functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) with improved solubility and biocompatibility can successfully transfer drugs, DNA, RNA, and proteins into the target cells. Theoretical studies such as molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations in fully atomistic scale were used to investigate the hydrophobic and aromatic π-π-stacking interaction of designing four novel surfactant peptides for non-covalent functionalization of SWCNTs. The results indicated that the designed peptides have binding affinity towards SWCNT with constant interactions during MD simulation times, and it can even be improved by increasing the number of tryptophan residues. The aromatic content of the peptides plays a significant role in their adsorption in SWCNT wall. The data suggest that π-π stacking interaction between the aromatic rings of tryptophan and π electrons of SWCNTs is more important than hydrophobic effects for dispersing carbon nanotubes; nevertheless SWCNTs are strongly hydrophobic in front of smooth surfaces. The usage of aromatic content of peptides for forming SWCNT/peptide complex was proved successfully, providing new insight into peptide design strategies for future nano-biomedical applications.

Synthesis and applications of large-area single-layer graphene

The progresses in syntheses of large-area single-layer graphene and applications in membrane separation are summarized in this review.

Separation of carbon dioxide and nitrogen gases through modified boron nitride nanosheets as a membrane: insights from molecular dynamics simulations

The progress of gas propagating through the pores of BNNSs was simulated using MD simulations. During a simulation time of 50 ns at 298 K, there is no CO₂ propagating through, meaning a high selectivity of pore 4 for CO₂/N₂ separation.

Removal of heavy metals from water through armchair carbon and boron nitride nanotubes: a computer simulation study

Number of heavy metals permeation from the (7,7) CNT and the (7,7) BNNT in the applied voltages.

Water desalination through armchair carbon nanotubes: a molecular dynamics study

Separation of ions from water using armchair carbon nanotubes.