Sun Q, Ma H, Wu L, Ding J, Wang L, Hu Y. Molecular Simulation for Guiding the Design and Optimization of Mixed Matrix Membranes (MMMs) in the Pervaporation Process.
LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2023;
39:5199-5210. [PMID:
36975611 DOI:
10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c00257]
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Abstract
Molecular simulation has been used extensively in the study of pervaporation membranes as a new economical and environmentally friendly research method. In this paper, A-SiO2/PDMS-PTFE mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) were prepared by molecular-simulation-guided experiments to achieve the separation of dimethyl carbonate/methanol (DMC/MeOH)) azeotropes. The interaction energy, X-ray diffraction pattern mean square displacement, and density field between PDMS and inorganic particles were analyzed by molecular dynamics simulations. The dissolution and diffusion processes of the DMC/MeOH azeotropes system in the MMM were simulated, and the surface-silylated silica (A-SiO2) with relatively better performance was screened. Based on the simulation results, A-SiO2/PDMS-PTFE MMMs were prepared by the coblending method, and the pervaporation separation performance of MMM membranes for DMC/MeOH azeotropes with different A-SiO2 loadings was investigated. When the A-SiO2 loading was 15 wt %, the separation factor of DMC/MeOH azeotropes at 50 °C was 4.74 and the flux was 1178 g m-2 h-1, which was consistent with the expected results of the simulation. The MMMs showed good stability in pervaporation over a period of up to 120 h. This study demonstrates that molecular simulations can provide a viable means for pretest screening and validation of experimental mechanisms, and to a certain extent, guide the design and optimization of pervaporation membranes.
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