Miniaturized Salinity Gradient Energy Harvesting Devices

Tunable Surface Charge of Layered Double Hydroxide Membranes Enabling Osmotic Energy Harvesting from Anion Transport

Membrane-based osmotic energy harvesting is a promising technology with zero carbon footprint. High-performance ion-selective membranes (ISMs) are the core components in such applications. Recent advancement in 2D nanomaterials opens new avenues for building highly efficient ISMs. However, the majority of the explored 2D nanomaterials have a negative surface charge, which selectively enhances cation transport, resulting in the underutilization of half of the available ions. In this study, ISMs based on layered double hydroxide (LDH) with tunable positive surface charge are studied. The membranes preferentially facilitate anion transport with high selectivity. Osmotic energy harvesting device based on these membranes reached a power density of 2.31 W m-2 under simulated river/sea water, about eight times versus that of a commercial membrane tested under the same conditions, and up to 7.05 W m-2 under elevated temperature and simulated brine/sea water, and long-term stability with consistent performance over a 40-day period. A prototype reverse electrodialysis energy harvesting device, comprising a pair of LDH membranes and commercial cation-selective membranes, is able to simultaneously harvest energy from both cations and anions achieving a power density of 6.38 W m-2 in simulated river/sea water, demonstrating its potential as building blocks for future energy harvesting systems.

Fluidics for energy harvesting: from nano to milli scales

A large amount of untapped energy sources surrounds us. In this review, we summarize recent works of water-based energy harvesting systems with operation scales ranging from miniature systems to large scale attempts. We focus particularly on the triboelectric energy, which is produced when a liquid and a solid come into contact, and on the osmotic energy, which is released when salt water and fresh water are mixed. For both techniques we display the state of the art understanding (including electrical charge separation, electro-osmotic currents and induced currents) and the developed devices. A critical discussion of present works confirms the significant progress of these water-based energy harvesting systems in all scales. However, further efforts in efficiency and performance amelioration are expected for these technologies to accelerate the industrialization and commercialization procedure.

Analyses of Pore-Size-Dependent Ionic Transport in Nanopores in the Presence of Concentration and Temperature Gradients

Mass transport through nanopores occurs in various natural systems, including the human body. For example, ion transport across nerve cell membranes plays a significant role in neural signal transmission, which can be significantly affected by the electrolyte and temperature conditions. To better understand and control the underlying nanoscopic transport, it is necessary to develop multiphysical transport models as well as validate them using enhanced experimental methods for facile nanopore fabrication and precise nanoscale transport characterization. Here, we report a nanopore-integrated microfluidic platform to characterize ion transport in the presence of electrolyte and temperature gradients; we employ our previous self-assembled particle membrane (SAPM)-integrated microfluidic platform to produce various nanopores with different pore sizes. Subsequently, we quantify pore-size-dependent ionic transport by measuring the short circuit current (SCC) and open circuit voltage (OCV) across various nanopores by manipulating the electrolyte and temperature gradients. We establish three simple theoretical models that heavily depend on pore size, electrolyte concentration, and temperature and subsequently validate them with the experimental results. Finally, we anticipate that the results of this study would help clarify ion transport phenomena at low-temperature conditions, not only providing a fundamental understanding but also enabling practical applications of cryo-anesthesia in the near future.