1
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Liu F, Ma Q, Sabuj MMA, Yen SH, Govindan D, Gao J, Zhao M, Elimelech M, Zhang W. Revolutionizing Airborne Virus Defense: Electromagnetic MXene-Coated Air Filtration for Superior Aerosol Viral Removal. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2024; 16:10148-10157. [PMID: 38363186 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.3c18227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/17/2024]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic sparked public health concerns about the transmission of airborne viruses. Current methods mainly capture pathogens without inactivation, leading to potential secondary pollution. Herein, we evaluated the inactivation performance of a model viral species (MS2) in simulated bioaerosol by an electromagnetically enhanced air filtration system under a 300 kHz electromagnetic induction field. A nonwoven fabric filter was coated with a 2D catalyst, MXene (Ti3C2Tx), at a coating density of 4.56 mg·cm-2 to absorb electromagnetic irradiation and produce local heating and electromagnetic field for microbial inactivation. The results showed that the MXene-coated air filter significantly enhanced the viral removal efficiency by achieving a log removal of 3.4 ± 0.15 under an electromagnetic power density of 369 W·cm-2. By contrast, the pristine filter without catalyst coating only garnered a log removal of 0.3 ± 0.04. Though the primary antimicrobial mechanism is the local heating as indicated by the elevated surface temperature of 72.2 ± 4 °C under the electromagnetic field, additional nonthermal effects (e.g., dielectrophoresis) on enhanced viral capture during electromagnetically enhanced filtration were investigated by COMSOL simulation to delineate the potential transmission trajectories of bioaerosol. The results provide unique insights into the mechanisms of pathogen control and thus promote alternative solutions for preventing the transmission of airborne pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fangzhou Liu
- John A. Reif, Jr. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, 323 Martin Luther King Blvd., Newark, New Jersey 07102-1982, United States
| | - Qingquan Ma
- John A. Reif, Jr. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, 323 Martin Luther King Blvd., Newark, New Jersey 07102-1982, United States
| | - Md Mohidul Alam Sabuj
- Otto H. York Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, 323 Martin Luther King Blvd., Newark, New Jersey 07102-1982, United States
| | - Shih-Hsiang Yen
- Otto H. York Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, 323 Martin Luther King Blvd., Newark, New Jersey 07102-1982, United States
| | - Dheeban Govindan
- Otto H. York Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, 323 Martin Luther King Blvd., Newark, New Jersey 07102-1982, United States
| | - Jianan Gao
- John A. Reif, Jr. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, 323 Martin Luther King Blvd., Newark, New Jersey 07102-1982, United States
| | - Mengqiang Zhao
- Otto H. York Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, 323 Martin Luther King Blvd., Newark, New Jersey 07102-1982, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Wen Zhang
- John A. Reif, Jr. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, 323 Martin Luther King Blvd., Newark, New Jersey 07102-1982, United States
- Otto H. York Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, 323 Martin Luther King Blvd., Newark, New Jersey 07102-1982, United States
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2
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Patel SK, Lee B, Westerhoff P, Elimelech M. The potential of electrodialysis as a cost-effective alternative to reverse osmosis for brackish water desalination. Water Res 2024; 250:121009. [PMID: 38118256 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2023.121009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/10/2023] [Indexed: 12/22/2023]
Abstract
While electrodialysis (ED) demonstrates lower energy consumption than reverse osmosis (RO) in the desalination of low salinity waters, RO continues to be the predominant technology for brackish water desalination. In this study, we probe this skewed market share and project the potential for future disruption by ED through systematic assessment of the levelized cost of water (LCOW). Using rigorous process- and economic-models, we minimize the LCOW of RO and ED systems, highlighting important tradeoffs between capital and operating expenditure for each technology. With optimized current state-of-the-art systems, we find that ED is more economical than RO for feed salinities ≤ 3 g L-1, albeit to a minor extent. Considering that RO is a highly mature technology, we focus on predicting the future potential of ED by evaluating plausible avenues for capital and operating cost reduction. Specifically, we find that reduction in the price of ion-exchange membranes (i.e., < 60 USD m-2) can ensure competitiveness with RO for feed salinities up to 5 g L-1. For higher feed salinities (≥ 5 g L-1) we reveal that the LCOW of ED may effectively be reduced by decreasing ion-exchange membrane resistance, while preserving high current efficiency. Through extensive assessment of structure-property-performance relationships, we precisely identify target membrane charge densities and diffusion coefficients which optimize the LCOW of ED, thus providing novel guidance for future membrane material development. Overall, we emphasize that with a unified approach - whereby ion-exchange membrane price is reduced and performance is enhanced - ED can become the economically preferable technology compared to RO across the entire brackish water salinity range.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sohum K Patel
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA; Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT)
| | - Boreum Lee
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA; Department of Environment and Energy Engineering, Chonnam National University, 77 Yongbong-ro, Buk-gu, Gwangju 61186, Republic of Korea
| | - Paul Westerhoff
- School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA; Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT).
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3
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Shang B, Zhao F, Suo S, Gao Y, Sheehan C, Jeon S, Li J, Rooney CL, Leitner O, Xiao L, Fan H, Elimelech M, Wang L, Meyer GJ, Stach EA, Mallouk TE, Lian T, Wang H. Tailoring Interfaces for Enhanced Methanol Production from Photoelectrochemical CO 2 Reduction. J Am Chem Soc 2024; 146:2267-2274. [PMID: 38207288 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c13540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
Efficient and stable photoelectrochemical reduction of CO2 into highly reduced liquid fuels remains a formidable challenge, which requires an innovative semiconductor/catalyst interface to tackle. In this study, we introduce a strategy involving the fabrication of a silicon micropillar array structure coated with a superhydrophobic fluorinated carbon layer for the photoelectrochemical conversion of CO2 into methanol. The pillars increase the electrode surface area, improve catalyst loading and adhesion without compromising light absorption, and help confine gaseous intermediates near the catalyst surface. The superhydrophobic coating passivates parasitic side reactions and further enhances local accumulation of reaction intermediates. Upon one-electron reduction of the molecular catalyst, the semiconductor-catalyst interface changes from adaptive to buried junctions, providing a sufficient thermodynamic driving force for CO2 reduction. These structures together create a unique microenvironment for effective reduction of CO2 to methanol, leading to a remarkable Faradaic efficiency reaching 20% together with a partial current density of 3.4 mA cm-2, surpassing the previous record based on planar silicon photoelectrodes by a notable factor of 17. This work demonstrates a new pathway for enhancing photoelectrocatalytic CO2 reduction through meticulous interface and microenvironment tailoring and sets a benchmark for both Faradaic efficiency and current density in solar liquid fuel production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Shang
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, Connecticut 06516, United States
| | - Fengyi Zhao
- Department of Chemistry, Emory University, 1515 Dickey Drive, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, United States
| | - Sa Suo
- Department of Chemistry, Emory University, 1515 Dickey Drive, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, United States
| | - Yuanzuo Gao
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, Connecticut 06516, United States
| | - Colton Sheehan
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
| | - Sungho Jeon
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
| | - Jing Li
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, Connecticut 06516, United States
| | - Conor L Rooney
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, Connecticut 06516, United States
| | - Oliver Leitner
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, Connecticut 06516, United States
| | - Langqiu Xiao
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
| | - Hanqing Fan
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Leizhi Wang
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, Connecticut 06516, United States
| | - Gerald J Meyer
- Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, United States
| | - Eric A Stach
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
| | - Thomas E Mallouk
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
| | - Tianquan Lian
- Department of Chemistry, Emory University, 1515 Dickey Drive, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, United States
| | - Hailiang Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, Connecticut 06516, United States
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4
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Winter LR, Cooper NJ, Lee B, Patel SK, Wang L, Elimelech M. Correction to "Mining Nontraditional Water Sources for a Distributed Hydrogen Economy". Environ Sci Technol 2024; 58:1420-1421. [PMID: 38170983 PMCID: PMC10795174 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c10143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024]
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5
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Finnerty CK, Childress AE, Hardy KM, Hoek EMV, Mauter MS, Plumlee MH, Rose JB, Sobsey MD, Westerhoff P, Alvarez PJJ, Elimelech M. The Future of Municipal Wastewater Reuse Concentrate Management: Drivers, Challenges, and Opportunities. Environ Sci Technol 2024; 58:3-16. [PMID: 38193155 PMCID: PMC10785764 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c06774] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2023] [Revised: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/10/2024]
Abstract
Water reuse is rapidly becoming an integral feature of resilient water systems, where municipal wastewater undergoes advanced treatment, typically involving a sequence of ultrafiltration (UF), reverse osmosis (RO), and an advanced oxidation process (AOP). When RO is used, a concentrated waste stream is produced that is elevated in not only total dissolved solids but also metals, nutrients, and micropollutants that have passed through conventional wastewater treatment. Management of this RO concentrate─dubbed municipal wastewater reuse concentrate (MWRC)─will be critical to address, especially as water reuse practices become more widespread. Building on existing brine management practices, this review explores MWRC management options by identifying infrastructural needs and opportunities for multi-beneficial disposal. To safeguard environmental systems from the potential hazards of MWRC, disposal, monitoring, and regulatory techniques are discussed to promote the safety and affordability of implementing MWRC management. Furthermore, opportunities for resource recovery and valorization are differentiated, while economic techniques to revamp cost-benefit analysis for MWRC management are examined. The goal of this critical review is to create a common foundation for researchers, practitioners, and regulators by providing an interdisciplinary set of tools and frameworks to address the impending challenges and emerging opportunities of MWRC management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Casey
T. K. Finnerty
- Department
of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Amy E. Childress
- Astani
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Kevin M. Hardy
- National
Water Research Institute, Fountain
Valley, California 92708, United States
| | - Eric M. V. Hoek
- Department
of Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, California 90095, United States
| | - Meagan S. Mauter
- Department
of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
| | - Megan H. Plumlee
- Orange County
Water District, Fountain Valley, California 92708, United States
| | - Joan B. Rose
- Department
of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State
University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, United States
| | - Mark D. Sobsey
- Department
of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Gillings School of Global
Public Health, The University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, United States
| | - Paul Westerhoff
- School
of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287-3005, United States
| | - Pedro J. J. Alvarez
- Department
of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77005,
United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department
of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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6
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Ma W, Patel SK, Marcos Hernández M, Wang X, Zhou X, Pan W, Shin Y, Villagrán D, Elimelech M. Rapid, Selective, and Chemical-Free Removal of Dissolved Silica from Water via Electrosorption: Feasibility and Mechanisms. Environ Sci Technol 2024; 58:947-959. [PMID: 38153969 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c08067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2023]
Abstract
The unavoidable and detrimental formation of silica scale in engineered processes necessitates the urgent development of effective, economic, and sustainable strategies for dissolved silica removal from water. Herein, we demonstrate a rapid, chemical-free, and selective silica removal method using electrosorption. Specifically, we confirm the feasibility of exploiting local pH dynamics at the electrodes in flow-through electrosorption, achieved through a counterintuitive cell configuration design, to induce ionization and concomitant electrosorption of dissolved silica. In addition, to improve the feasibility of silica electrosorption under high-salinity solutions, we developed a silica-selective anode by functionalizing porous activated carbon cloths with aluminum hydroxide nanoparticles (Al(OH)3-p-ACC). The modification markedly enhances silica sorption capacity (2.8 vs 1.1 mgsilica ganode-1) and reduces the specific energy consumption (13.3 vs 19.8 kWh kgsilica-1). Notably, the modified electrode retains remarkable silica sorption capacity even in the presence of high concentrations of co-occurring ions (up to 100 mM NaCl). The mechanisms underlying the superior silica removal stability and selectivity with the Al(OH)3-p-ACC electrode are also elucidated, revealing a synergistic interaction involving outer-sphere and inner-sphere complexation between dissolved silica and Al(OH)3 nanoparticles on the electrodes. Moreover, we find that effective regeneration of the electrodes may be achieved by applying a reverse potential during discharge, although complete regeneration of the modified electrodes may necessitate alternative materials or process optimization. We recommend the adoption of feedwater-specific designs for the development of future silica-selective electrodes in electrosorption capable of meeting silica removal demands across a wide range of engineered systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen Ma
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Department of Chemical and Biotechnology Engineering, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Quebec J1K 2R1, Canada
| | - Sohum K Patel
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Mariana Marcos Hernández
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), The University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas 79968, United States
| | - Xiaoxiong Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Xuechen Zhou
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Weiyi Pan
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Yonguk Shin
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Dino Villagrán
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), The University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas 79968, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology─Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
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7
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Kaneda M, Dong D, Chen Y, Zhang X, Xue Y, Bryantsev VS, Elimelech M, Zhong M. Molecular Design of Functional Polymers for Silica Scale Inhibition. Environ Sci Technol 2024; 58:871-882. [PMID: 38150403 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c06504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2023]
Abstract
Silica polymerization, which involves the condensation reaction of silicic acid, is a fundamental process with wide-ranging implications in biological systems, material synthesis, and scale formation. The formation of a silica-based scale poses significant technological challenges to energy-efficient operations in various industrial processes, including heat exchangers and water treatment membranes. Despite the common strategy of applying functional polymers for inhibiting silica polymerization, the underlying mechanisms of inhibition remain elusive. In this study, we synthesized a series of nitrogen-containing polymers as silica inhibitors and elucidated the role of their molecular structures in stabilizing silicic acids. Polymers with both charged amine and uncharged amide groups in their backbones exhibit superior inhibition performance, retaining up to 430 ppm of reactive silica intact for 8 h under neutral pH conditions. In contrast, monomers of these amine/amide-containing polymers as well as polymers containing only amine or amide functionalities present insignificant inhibition. Molecular dynamics simulations reveal strong binding between the deprotonated silicic acid and a polymer when the amine groups in the polymer are protonated. Notably, an extended chain conformation of the polymer is crucial to prevent proximity between the interacting monomeric silica species, thereby facilitating effective silica inhibition. Furthermore, the hydrophobic nature of alkyl segments in polymer chains disrupts the hydration shell around the polymer, resulting in enhanced binding with ionized silicic acid precursors compared to monomers. Our findings provide novel mechanistic insights into the stabilization of silicic acids with functional polymers, highlighting the molecular design principles of effective inhibitors for silica polymerization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masashi Kaneda
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Dengpan Dong
- Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831, United States
| | - Yinan Chen
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Xiaowei Zhang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Yazhen Xue
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Vyacheslav S Bryantsev
- Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Mingjiang Zhong
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
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8
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Zhou X, Shevate R, Huang D, Cao T, Shen X, Hu S, Mane AU, Elam JW, Kim JH, Elimelech M. Ceramic thin-film composite membranes with tunable subnanometer pores for molecular sieving. Nat Commun 2023; 14:7255. [PMID: 37945562 PMCID: PMC10636005 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42495-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Ceramic membranes are a promising alternative to polymeric membranes for selective separations, given their ability to operate under harsh chemical conditions. However, current fabrication technologies fail to construct ceramic membranes suitable for selective molecular separations. Herein, we demonstrate a molecular-level design of ceramic thin-film composite membranes with tunable subnanometer pores for precise molecular sieving. Through burning off the distributed carbonaceous species of varied dimensions within hybrid aluminum oxide films, we created membranes with tunable molecular sieving. Specifically, the membranes created with methanol showed exceptional selectivity toward monovalent and divalent salts. We attribute this observed selectivity to the dehydration of the large divalent ions within the subnanometer pores. As a comparison, smaller monovalent ions can rapidly permeate with an intact hydration shell. Lastly, the flux of neutral solutes through each fabricated aluminum oxide membrane was measured for the demonstration of tunable separation capability. Overall, our work provides the scientific basis for the design of ceramic membranes with subnanometer pores for molecular sieving using atomic layer deposition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuechen Zhou
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Rahul Shevate
- Applied Materials Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL, USA
| | - Dahong Huang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Tianchi Cao
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Xin Shen
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Shu Hu
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Anil U Mane
- Applied Materials Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL, USA
| | - Jeffrey W Elam
- Applied Materials Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL, USA
| | - Jae-Hong Kim
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
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9
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Heiranian M, Fan H, Wang L, Lu X, Elimelech M. Mechanisms and models for water transport in reverse osmosis membranes: history, critical assessment, and recent developments. Chem Soc Rev 2023. [PMID: 37889082 DOI: 10.1039/d3cs00395g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2023]
Abstract
Water scarcity is one of the greatest societal challenges facing humanity. Reverse osmosis (RO) desalination, a widely used membrane-based technology, has proven to be effective to augment water supply in water-stressed regions of our planet. However, progress in the design and development of RO membranes has been limited. To significantly enhance the performance of RO membranes, it is essential to acquire a deep understanding of the membrane separation and transport mechanisms. In this tutorial review, we cover the pivotal historical developments in RO technology, examine the chemical and physical properties of RO membrane materials, and critically review the models and mechanisms proposed for water transport in RO membranes. Based on recent experimental and computational findings, we conduct a thorough analysis of the key transport models-the solution-diffusion and pore-flow models-to assess their validity for accurately describing water transport in RO membranes. Our analysis involves examining the experimental evidence in favor of the solution-diffusion mechanism. Specifically, we explain whether the water content gradient within the membrane, cited as evidence for the key assumption in the solution-diffusion model, can drive a diffusive transport through RO membranes. Additionally, we review the recent molecular dynamics simulations which support the pore-flow mechanism for describing water transport in RO membranes. We conclude by providing future research directions aimed at addressing key knowledge gaps in water transport phenomena in RO membranes, with the goal of advancing the development of next-generation RO membranes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Heiranian
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, USA.
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695-7910, USA
| | - Hanqing Fan
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, USA.
| | - Li Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, USA.
- College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xinglin Lu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Urban Pollutant Conversion, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, USA.
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10
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Pärnamäe R, Tedesco M, Wu MC, Hou CH, Hamelers HVM, Patel SK, Elimelech M, Biesheuvel PM, Porada S. Origin of Limiting and Overlimiting Currents in Bipolar Membranes. Environ Sci Technol 2023. [PMID: 37341475 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c09410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/22/2023]
Abstract
Bipolar membranes (BPMs), a special class of ion exchange membranes with the unique ability to electrochemically induce either water dissociation or recombination, are of growing interest for environmental applications including eliminating chemical dosage for pH adjustment, resource recovery, valorization of brines, and carbon capture. However, ion transport within BPMs, and particularly at its junction, has remained poorly understood. This work aims to theoretically and experimentally investigate ion transport in BPMs under both reverse and forward bias operation modes, taking into account the production or recombination of H+ and OH-, as well as the transport of salt ions (e.g., Na+, Cl-) inside the membrane. We adopt a model based on the Nernst-Planck theory, that requires only three input parameters─membrane thickness, its charge density, and pK of proton adsorption─to predict the concentration profiles of four ions (H+, OH-, Na+, and Cl-) inside the membrane and the resulting current-voltage curve. The model can predict most of the experimental results measured with a commercial BPM, including the observation of limiting and overlimiting currents, which emerge due to particular concentration profiles that develop inside the BPM. This work provides new insights into the physical phenomena in BPMs and helps identify optimal operating conditions for future environmental applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ragne Pärnamäe
- Wetsus, European Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands
- Environmental Technology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Michele Tedesco
- Wetsus, European Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands
| | - Min-Chen Wu
- Graduate Institute of Environmental Engineering, National Taiwan University No.1, Sec. 4. Roosevelt Rd., Taipei 10617, Taiwan
| | - Chia-Hung Hou
- Graduate Institute of Environmental Engineering, National Taiwan University No.1, Sec. 4. Roosevelt Rd., Taipei 10617, Taiwan
| | - Hubertus V M Hamelers
- Wetsus, European Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands
- Environmental Technology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Sohum K Patel
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - P M Biesheuvel
- Wetsus, European Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands
| | - Slawomir Porada
- Wetsus, European Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands
- Department of Process Engineering and Technology of Polymeric and Carbon Materials, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, Wroclaw 50-370, Poland
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11
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Zhang YJ, Chen JJ, Huang GX, Li WW, Yu HQ, Elimelech M. Distinguishing homogeneous advanced oxidation processes in bulk water from heterogeneous surface reactions in organic oxidation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2302407120. [PMID: 37155859 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2302407120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Clarifying the reaction pathways at the solid-water interface and in bulk water solution is of great significance for the design of heterogeneous catalysts for selective oxidation of organic pollutants. However, achieving this goal is daunting because of the intricate interfacial reactions at the catalyst surface. Herein, we unravel the origin of the organic oxidation reactions with metal oxide catalysts, revealing that the radical-based advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) prevail in bulk water but not on the solid catalyst surfaces. We show that such differing reaction pathways widely exist in various chemical oxidation (e.g., high-valent Mn3+ and MnOX) and Fenton and Fenton-like catalytic oxidation (e.g., Fe2+ and FeOCl catalyzing H2O2, Co2+ and Co3O4 catalyzing persulfate) systems. Compared with the radical-based degradation and polymerization pathways of one-electron indirect AOP in homogeneous reactions, the heterogeneous catalysts provide unique surface properties to trigger surface-dependent coupling and polymerization pathways of a two-electron direct oxidative transfer process. These findings provide a fundamental understanding of catalytic organic oxidation processes at the solid-water interface, which could guide the design of heterogeneous nanocatalysts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying-Jie Zhang
- Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Jie-Jie Chen
- Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Gui-Xiang Huang
- Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Wen-Wei Li
- Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Han-Qing Yu
- Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
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12
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Bai Y, Liu B, Li J, Li M, Yao Z, Dong L, Rao D, Zhang P, Cao X, Villalobos LF, Zhang C, An QF, Elimelech M. Microstructure optimization of bioderived polyester nanofilms for antibiotic desalination via nanofiltration. Sci Adv 2023; 9:eadg6134. [PMID: 37146143 PMCID: PMC10162667 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adg6134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
The successful implementation of thin-film composite membranes (TFCM) for challenging solute-solute separations in the pharmaceutical industry requires a fine control over the microstructure (size, distribution, and connectivity of the free-volume elements) and thickness of the selective layer. For example, desalinating antibiotic streams requires highly interconnected free-volume elements of the right size to block antibiotics but allow the passage of salt ions and water. Here, we introduce stevioside, a plant-derived contorted glycoside, as a promising aqueous phase monomer for optimizing the microstructure of TFCM made via interfacial polymerization. The low diffusion rate and moderate reactivity of stevioside, together with its nonplanar and distorted conformation, produced thin selective layers with an ideal microporosity for antibiotic desalination. For example, an optimized 18-nm membrane exhibited an unprecedented combination of high water permeance (81.2 liter m-2 hour-1 bar-1), antibiotic desalination efficiency (NaCl/tetracycline separation factor of 11.4), antifouling performance, and chlorine resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yunxiang Bai
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Biological Colloids, Ministry of Education, School of Chemical and Material Engineering, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Road, Wuxi 214122, P. R. China
| | - Beibei Liu
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Biological Colloids, Ministry of Education, School of Chemical and Material Engineering, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Road, Wuxi 214122, P. R. China
| | - Jiachen Li
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, P. R. China
| | - Minghui Li
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Biological Colloids, Ministry of Education, School of Chemical and Material Engineering, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Road, Wuxi 214122, P. R. China
| | - Zheng Yao
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Biological Colloids, Ministry of Education, School of Chemical and Material Engineering, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Road, Wuxi 214122, P. R. China
| | - Liangliang Dong
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Biological Colloids, Ministry of Education, School of Chemical and Material Engineering, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Road, Wuxi 214122, P. R. China
| | - Dewei Rao
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, PR China
| | - Peng Zhang
- Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
| | - Xingzhong Cao
- Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
| | | | - Chunfang Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Biological Colloids, Ministry of Education, School of Chemical and Material Engineering, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Road, Wuxi 214122, P. R. China
| | - Quan-Fu An
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Green Catalysis and Separation, Department of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, 100124, Beijing, China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
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13
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Zhu Y, Gui L, Wang R, Wang Y, Fang W, Elimelech M, Lin S, Jin J. Regulation of molecular transport in polymer membranes with voltage-controlled pore size at the angstrom scale. Nat Commun 2023; 14:2373. [PMID: 37185940 PMCID: PMC10130050 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-38114-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2022] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Polymer membranes have been used extensively for Angstrom-scale separation of solutes and molecules. However, the pore size of most polymer membranes has been considered an intrinsic membrane property that cannot be adjusted in operation by applied stimuli. In this work, we show that the pore size of an electrically conductive polyamide membrane can be modulated by an applied voltage in the presence of electrolyte via a mechanism called electrically induced osmotic swelling. Under applied voltage, the highly charged polyamide layer concentrates counter ions in the polymer network via Donnan equilibrium and creates a sizeable osmotic pressure to enlarge the free volume and the effective pore size. The relation between membrane potential and pore size can be quantitatively described using the extended Flory-Rehner theory with Donnan equilibrium. The ability to regulate pore size via applied voltage enables operando modulation of precise molecular separation in-situ. This study demonstrates the amazing capability of electro-regulation of membrane pore size at the Angstrom scale and unveils an important but previously overlooked mechanism of membrane-water-solute interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuzhang Zhu
- i-Lab, Suzhou Institute of Nano-Tech and Nano-Bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, 215123, PR China
| | - Liangliang Gui
- i-Lab, Suzhou Institute of Nano-Tech and Nano-Bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, 215123, PR China
| | - Ruoyu Wang
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
| | - Yunfeng Wang
- i-Lab, Suzhou Institute of Nano-Tech and Nano-Bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, 215123, PR China
| | - Wangxi Fang
- i-Lab, Suzhou Institute of Nano-Tech and Nano-Bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, 215123, PR China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520-8286, USA
| | - Shihong Lin
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA.
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA.
| | - Jian Jin
- i-Lab, Suzhou Institute of Nano-Tech and Nano-Bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou, 215123, PR China.
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Innovation Center for Chemical Science & Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Advanced Functional Polymer Design and Application, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215123, PR China.
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14
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DuChanois RM, Mazurowski L, Fan H, Verduzco R, Nir O, Elimelech M. Precise Cation Separations with Composite Cation-Exchange Membranes: Role of Base Layer Properties. Environ Sci Technol 2023; 57:6331-6341. [PMID: 37023347 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c00445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
Separation of specific ions from water could enable recovery and reuse of essential metals and nutrients, but established membrane technologies lack the high-precision selectivity needed to facilitate a circular resource economy. In this work, we investigate whether the cation/cation selectivity of a composite cation-exchange membrane (CEM), or a thin polymer selective layer on top of a CEM, may be limited by the mass transfer resistance of the underlying CEM. In our analysis, we utilize a layer-by-layer technique to modify CEMs with a thin polymer selective layer (∼50 nm) that has previously shown high selectivity toward copper over similarly sized metals. While these composite membranes have a CuCl2/MgCl2 selectivity up to 33 times larger than unmodified CEMs in diffusion dialysis, our estimates suggest that eliminating resistance from the underlying CEM could further increase selectivity twofold. In contrast, the CEM base layer has a smaller effect on the selectivity of these composite membranes in electrodialysis, although these effects could become more pronounced for ultrathin or highly conductive selective layers. Our results highlight that base layer resistance prevents selectivity factors from being comparable across diffusion dialysis and electrodialysis, and CEMs with low resistance are necessary for providing highly precise separations with composite CEMs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan M DuChanois
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
| | - Lauren Mazurowski
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
| | - Hanqing Fan
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Rafael Verduzco
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
| | - Oded Nir
- Department of Desalination and Water Treatment, Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, The Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede-Boqer Campus, Midreshet Ben Gurion 8499000, Israel
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
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15
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Wang L, He J, Heiranian M, Fan H, Song L, Li Y, Elimelech M. Water transport in reverse osmosis membranes is governed by pore flow, not a solution-diffusion mechanism. Sci Adv 2023; 9:eadf8488. [PMID: 37058571 PMCID: PMC10104469 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adf8488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2022] [Accepted: 03/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
We performed nonequilibrium molecular dynamics (NEMD) simulations and solvent permeation experiments to unravel the mechanism of water transport in reverse osmosis (RO) membranes. The NEMD simulations reveal that water transport is driven by a pressure gradient within the membranes, not by a water concentration gradient, in marked contrast to the classic solution-diffusion model. We further show that water molecules travel as clusters through a network of pores that are transiently connected. Permeation experiments with water and organic solvents using polyamide and cellulose triacetate RO membranes showed that solvent permeance depends on the membrane pore size, kinetic diameter of solvent molecules, and solvent viscosity. This observation is not consistent with the solution-diffusion model, where permeance depends on the solvent solubility. Motivated by these observations, we demonstrate that the solution-friction model, in which transport is driven by a pressure gradient, can describe water and solvent transport in RO membranes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
| | - Jinlong He
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706-1572, USA
| | - Mohammad Heiranian
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
| | - Hanqing Fan
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
| | - Lianfa Song
- Department of Civil, Environmental, and Construction Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409-1023, USA
| | - Ying Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706-1572, USA
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
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16
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Gao Y, Liang S, Liu B, Jiang C, Xu C, Zhang X, Liang P, Elimelech M, Huang X. Subtle tuning of nanodefects actuates highly efficient electrocatalytic oxidation. Nat Commun 2023; 14:2059. [PMID: 37045829 PMCID: PMC10097648 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-37676-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2022] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 04/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Achieving controllable fine-tuning of defects in catalysts at the atomic level has become a zealous pursuit in catalysis-related fields. However, the generation of defects is quite random, and their flexible manipulation lacks theoretical basis. Herein, we present a facile and highly controllable thermal tuning strategy that enables fine control of nanodefects via subtle manipulation of atomic/lattice arrangements in electrocatalysts. Such thermal tuning endows common carbon materials with record high efficiency in electrocatalytic degradation of pollutants. Systematic characterization and calculations demonstrate that an optimal thermal tuning can bring about enhanced electrocatalytic efficiency by manipulating the N-centered annulation-volatilization reactions and C-based sp3/sp2 configuration alteration. Benefiting from this tuning strategy, the optimized electrocatalytic anodic membrane successfully achieves >99% pollutant (propranolol) degradation during a flow-through (~2.5 s for contact time), high-flux (424.5 L m-2 h-1), and long-term (>720 min) electrocatalytic filtration test at a very low energy consumption (0.029 ± 0.010 kWh m-3 order-1). Our findings highlight a controllable preparation approach of catalysts while also elucidating the molecular level mechanisms involved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifan Gao
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Shuai Liang
- Beijing Key Lab for Source Control Technology of Water Pollution, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, 100083, China.
| | - Biming Liu
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Chengxu Jiang
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Chenyang Xu
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Xiaoyuan Zhang
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Peng Liang
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520-8286, USA.
| | - Xia Huang
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China.
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17
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Aluru NR, Aydin F, Bazant MZ, Blankschtein D, Brozena AH, de Souza JP, Elimelech M, Faucher S, Fourkas JT, Koman VB, Kuehne M, Kulik HJ, Li HK, Li Y, Li Z, Majumdar A, Martis J, Misra RP, Noy A, Pham TA, Qu H, Rayabharam A, Reed MA, Ritt CL, Schwegler E, Siwy Z, Strano MS, Wang Y, Yao YC, Zhan C, Zhang Z. Fluids and Electrolytes under Confinement in Single-Digit Nanopores. Chem Rev 2023; 123:2737-2831. [PMID: 36898130 PMCID: PMC10037271 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.2c00155] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/12/2023]
Abstract
Confined fluids and electrolyte solutions in nanopores exhibit rich and surprising physics and chemistry that impact the mass transport and energy efficiency in many important natural systems and industrial applications. Existing theories often fail to predict the exotic effects observed in the narrowest of such pores, called single-digit nanopores (SDNs), which have diameters or conduit widths of less than 10 nm, and have only recently become accessible for experimental measurements. What SDNs reveal has been surprising, including a rapidly increasing number of examples such as extraordinarily fast water transport, distorted fluid-phase boundaries, strong ion-correlation and quantum effects, and dielectric anomalies that are not observed in larger pores. Exploiting these effects presents myriad opportunities in both basic and applied research that stand to impact a host of new technologies at the water-energy nexus, from new membranes for precise separations and water purification to new gas permeable materials for water electrolyzers and energy-storage devices. SDNs also present unique opportunities to achieve ultrasensitive and selective chemical sensing at the single-ion and single-molecule limit. In this review article, we summarize the progress on nanofluidics of SDNs, with a focus on the confinement effects that arise in these extremely narrow nanopores. The recent development of precision model systems, transformative experimental tools, and multiscale theories that have played enabling roles in advancing this frontier are reviewed. We also identify new knowledge gaps in our understanding of nanofluidic transport and provide an outlook for the future challenges and opportunities at this rapidly advancing frontier.
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Affiliation(s)
- Narayana R Aluru
- Oden Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences, Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, 78712TexasUnited States
| | - Fikret Aydin
- Materials Science Division, Physical and Life Science Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California94550, United States
| | - Martin Z Bazant
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
- Department of Mathematics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
| | - Daniel Blankschtein
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
| | - Alexandra H Brozena
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland20742, United States
| | - J Pedro de Souza
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut06520-8286, United States
| | - Samuel Faucher
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
| | - John T Fourkas
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland20742, United States
- Institute for Physical Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland20742, United States
- Maryland NanoCenter, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland20742, United States
| | - Volodymyr B Koman
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
| | - Matthias Kuehne
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
| | - Heather J Kulik
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
| | - Hao-Kun Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California94305, United States
| | - Yuhao Li
- Materials Science Division, Physical and Life Science Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California94550, United States
| | - Zhongwu Li
- Materials Science Division, Physical and Life Science Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California94550, United States
| | - Arun Majumdar
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California94305, United States
| | - Joel Martis
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California94305, United States
| | - Rahul Prasanna Misra
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
| | - Aleksandr Noy
- Materials Science Division, Physical and Life Science Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California94550, United States
- School of Natural Sciences, University of California Merced, Merced, California95344, United States
| | - Tuan Anh Pham
- Materials Science Division, Physical and Life Science Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California94550, United States
| | - Haoran Qu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland20742, United States
| | - Archith Rayabharam
- Oden Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences, Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, 78712TexasUnited States
| | - Mark A Reed
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Yale University, 15 Prospect Street, New Haven, Connecticut06520, United States
| | - Cody L Ritt
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut06520-8286, United States
| | - Eric Schwegler
- Materials Science Division, Physical and Life Science Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California94550, United States
| | - Zuzanna Siwy
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Department of Chemistry, Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Irvine, Irvine92697, United States
| | - Michael S Strano
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts02139, United States
| | - YuHuang Wang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland20742, United States
- Maryland NanoCenter, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland20742, United States
| | - Yun-Chiao Yao
- Materials Science Division, Physical and Life Science Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California94550, United States
- School of Natural Sciences, University of California Merced, Merced, California95344, United States
| | - Cheng Zhan
- Materials Science Division, Physical and Life Science Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California94550, United States
| | - Ze Zhang
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California94305, United States
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18
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Patel SK, Pan W, Shin YU, Kamcev J, Elimelech M. Electrosorption Integrated with Bipolar Membrane Water Dissociation: A Coupled Approach to Chemical-free Boron Removal. Environ Sci Technol 2023; 57:4578-4590. [PMID: 36893399 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c00058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Boron removal from aqueous solutions has long persisted as a technological challenge, accounting for a disproportionately large fraction of the chemical and energy usage in seawater desalination and other industrial processes like lithium recovery. Here, we introduce a novel electrosorption-based boron removal technology with the capability to overcome the limitations of current state-of-the-art methods. Specifically, we incorporate a bipolar membrane (BPM) between a pair of porous carbon electrodes, demonstrating a synergized BPM-electrosorption process for the first time. The ion transport and charge transfer mechanisms of the BPM-electrosorption system are thoroughly investigated, confirming that water dissociation in the BPM is highly coupled with electrosorption of anions at the anode. We then demonstrate effective boron removal by the BPM-electrosorption system and verify that the mechanism for boron removal is electrosorption, as opposed to adsorption on the carbon electrodes or in the BPM. The effect of applied voltage on the boron removal performance is then evaluated, revealing that applied potentials above ∼1.0 V result in a decline in process efficiency due to the increased prevalence of detrimental Faradaic reactions at the anode. The BPM-electrosorption system is then directly compared with flow-through electrosorption, highlighting key advantages of the process with regard to boron sorption capacity and energy consumption. Overall, the BPM-electrosorption shows promising boron removal capability, with a sorption capacity >4.5 μmol g-C-1 and a corresponding specific energy consumption of <2.5 kWh g-B-1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sohum K Patel
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Weiyi Pan
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Yong-Uk Shin
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Jovan Kamcev
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Macromolecular Science and Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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19
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Wang L, Cao T, Pataroque KE, Kaneda M, Biesheuvel PM, Elimelech M. Significance of Co-ion Partitioning in Salt Transport through Polyamide Reverse Osmosis Membranes. Environ Sci Technol 2023; 57:3930-3939. [PMID: 36815574 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c09772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Salt permeability of polyamide reverse osmosis (RO) membranes has been shown to increase with increasing feed salt concentration. The dependence of salt permeability on salt concentration has been attributed to the variation of salt partitioning with feed salt concentration. However, studies using various analytical techniques revealed that the salt (total ion) partitioning coefficient decreases with increasing salt concentration, in marked contrast to the observed increase in salt permeability. Herein, we thoroughly investigate the dependence of total ion and co-ion partitioning coefficients on salt concentration and solution pH. The salt partitioning is measured using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM), while the co-ion partitioning is calculated from the measured salt partitioning using a modified Donnan theory. Our results demonstrate that the co-ion and total ion partitioning behave entirely differently with increasing salt concentrations. Specifically, the co-ion partitioning increased fourfold, while total ion partitioning decreased by 60% as the salt (NaCl) concentration increased from 100 to 800 mM. The increase in co-ion partitioning with increasing salt concentration is in accordance with the increasing trend of salt permeability in RO experiments. We further show that the dependence of salt and co-ion partitioning on salt concentration is much more pronounced at a higher solution pH. The good co-ion exclusion (GCE) model─derived from the solution-friction model─is used to calculate the salt permeability based on the co-ion partitioning coefficients. Our results show that the GCE model predicts the salt permeabilities in RO experiments relatively well, indicating that co-ion partitioning, not salt partitioning, governs salt transport through RO membranes. Our study provides an in-depth understanding of ion partitioning in polyamide RO membranes and its relationship with salt transport.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Tianchi Cao
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Kevin E Pataroque
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Masashi Kaneda
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - P Maarten Biesheuvel
- European Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology, Wetsus, Leeuwarden 8911 MA, The Netherlands
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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20
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Choi C, Wang X, Kwon S, Hart JL, Rooney CL, Harmon NJ, Sam QP, Cha JJ, Goddard WA, Elimelech M, Wang H. Efficient electrocatalytic valorization of chlorinated organic water pollutant to ethylene. Nat Nanotechnol 2023; 18:160-167. [PMID: 36536043 DOI: 10.1038/s41565-022-01277-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2022] [Accepted: 10/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Electrochemistry can provide an efficient and sustainable way to treat environmental waters polluted by chlorinated organic compounds. However, the electrochemical valorization of 1,2-dichloroethane (DCA) is currently challenged by the lack of a catalyst that can selectively convert DCA in aqueous solutions into ethylene. Here we report a catalyst comprising cobalt phthalocyanine molecules assembled on multiwalled carbon nanotubes that can electrochemically decompose aqueous DCA with high current and energy efficiencies. Ethylene is produced at high rates with unprecedented ~100% Faradaic efficiency across wide electrode potential and reactant concentration ranges. Kinetic studies and density functional theory calculations reveal that the rate-determining step is the first C-Cl bond breaking, which does not involve protons-a key mechanistic feature that enables cobalt phthalocyanine/carbon nanotube to efficiently catalyse DCA dechlorination and suppress the hydrogen evolution reaction. The nanotubular structure of the catalyst enables us to shape it into a flow-through electrified membrane, which we have used to demonstrate >95% DCA removal from simulated water samples with environmentally relevant DCA and electrolyte concentrations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chungseok Choi
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT, USA
| | - Xiaoxiong Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Soonho Kwon
- Materials and Process Simulation Center (MSC), California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - James L Hart
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Conor L Rooney
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT, USA
| | - Nia J Harmon
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT, USA
| | - Quynh P Sam
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Judy J Cha
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT, USA
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Yale University, West Haven, CT, USA
| | - William A Goddard
- Materials and Process Simulation Center (MSC), California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA.
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
| | - Hailiang Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
- Energy Sciences Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT, USA.
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21
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Wang X, Wang T, Zhang T, Winter LR, Di J, Tu Q, Hu H, Hertwich E, Zimmerman JB, Elimelech M. Microalgae Commercialization Using Renewable Lignocellulose Is Economically and Environmentally Viable. Environ Sci Technol 2023; 57:1144-1156. [PMID: 36599031 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c04607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Conventional phototrophic cultivation for microalgae production suffers from low and unstable biomass productivity due to limited and unreliable light transmission outdoors. Alternatively, the use of a renewable lignocellulose-derived carbon source, cellulosic hydrolysate, offers a cost-effective and sustainable pathway to cultivate microalgae heterotrophically with high algal growth rate and terminal density. In this study, we evaluate the feasibility of cellulosic hydrolysate-mediated heterotrophic cultivation (Cel-HC) for microalgae production by performing economic and environmental comparisons with phototrophic cultivation through techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment. We estimate a minimum selling price (MSP) of 4722 USD/t for producing high-purity microalgae through Cel-HC considering annual biomass productivity of 300 t (dry weight), which is competitive with the conventional phototrophic raceway pond system. Revenues from the lignocellulose-derived co-products, xylose and fulvic acid fertilizer, could further reduce the MSP to 2976 USD/t, highlighting the advantages of simultaneously producing high-value products and biofuels in an integrated biorefinery scheme. Further, Cel-HC exhibits lower environmental impacts, such as cumulative energy demand and greenhouse gas emissions, than phototrophic systems, revealing its potential to reduce the carbon intensity of algae-derived commodities. Our results demonstrate the economic and environmental competitiveness of heterotrophic microalgae production based on renewable bio-feedstock of lignocellulose.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxiong Wang
- Institute for Ocean Engineering, Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518055, China
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Tong Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- School of Ecological and Environmental Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
- Center for Industrial Ecology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Tianyuan Zhang
- Research Institute for Environmental Innovation (Suzhou), Tsinghua University, Suzhou 215163, China
- Suzhou Polynovo Biotech Co., Ltd., Suzhou 215129, China
| | - Lea R Winter
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Jinghan Di
- School of Environment and Natural Resources, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
| | - Qingshi Tu
- Department of Wood Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Hongying Hu
- Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Edgar Hertwich
- Department of Energy and Process Engineering, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7495 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Julie B Zimmerman
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Yale School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
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22
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Han S, Zhu J, Uliana AA, Li D, Zhang Y, Zhang L, Wang Y, He T, Elimelech M. Microporous organic nanotube assisted design of high performance nanofiltration membranes. Nat Commun 2022; 13:7954. [PMID: 36575167 PMCID: PMC9794819 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-35681-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Microporous organic nanotubes (MONs) hold considerable promise for designing molecular-sieving membranes because of their high microporosity, customizable chemical functionalities, and favorable polymer affinity. Herein, we report the use of MONs derived from covalent organic frameworks to engineer 15-nm-thick microporous membranes via interfacial polymerization (IP). The incorporation of a highly porous and interpenetrated MON layer on the membrane before the IP reaction leads to the formation of polyamide membranes with Turing structure, enhanced microporosity, and reduced thickness. The MON-modified membranes achieve a remarkable water permeability of 41.7 L m-2 h-1 bar-1 and high retention of boron (78.0%) and phosphorus (96.8%) at alkaline conditions (pH 10), surpassing those of reported nanofiltration membranes. Molecular simulations reveal that introducing the MONs not only reduces the amine molecule diffusion toward the organic phase boundary but also increases membrane porosity and the density of water molecules around the membrane pores. This MON-regulated IP strategy provides guidelines for creating high-permeability membranes for precise nanofiltration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuangqiao Han
- grid.207374.50000 0001 2189 3846School of Chemical Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001 China
| | - Junyong Zhu
- grid.207374.50000 0001 2189 3846School of Chemical Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001 China
| | - Adam A. Uliana
- grid.47840.3f0000 0001 2181 7878Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
| | - Dongyang Li
- grid.207374.50000 0001 2189 3846School of Chemical Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001 China
| | - Yatao Zhang
- grid.207374.50000 0001 2189 3846School of Chemical Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001 China
| | - Lin Zhang
- grid.13402.340000 0004 1759 700XKey Laboratory of Biomass Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027 China
| | - Yong Wang
- grid.412022.70000 0000 9389 5210College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, 210009 China
| | - Tao He
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309Laboratory for Membrane Materials and Separation Technologies, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210 China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- grid.47100.320000000419368710Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286 USA
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23
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Ritt CL, de Souza JP, Barsukov MG, Yosinski S, Bazant MZ, Reed MA, Elimelech M. Thermodynamics of Charge Regulation during Ion Transport through Silica Nanochannels. ACS Nano 2022; 16:15249-15260. [PMID: 36075111 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.2c06633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Ion-surface interactions can alter the properties of nanopores and dictate nanofluidic transport in engineered and biological systems central to the water-energy nexus. The ion adsorption process, known as "charge regulation", is ion-specific and is dependent on the extent of confinement when the electric double layers (EDLs) between two charged surfaces overlap. A fundamental understanding of the mechanisms behind charge regulation remains lacking. Herein, we study the thermodynamics of charge regulation reactions in 20 nm SiO2 channels via conductance measurements at various concentrations and temperatures. The effective activation energies (Ea) for ion conductance at low concentrations (strong EDL overlap) are ∼2-fold higher than at high concentrations (no EDL overlap) for the electrolytes studied here: LiCl, NaCl, KCl, and CsCl. We find that Ea values measured at high concentrations result from the temperature dependence of viscosity and its influence on ion mobility, whereas Ea values measured at low concentrations result from the combined effects of ion mobility and the enthalpy of cation adsorption to the charged surface. Notably, the Ea for surface reactions increases from 7.03 kJ mol-1 for NaCl to 16.72 ± 0.48 kJ mol-1 for KCl, corresponding to a difference in surface charge of -8.2 to -0.8 mC m-2, respectively. We construct a charge regulation model to rationalize the cation-specific charge regulation behavior based on an adsorption equilibrium. Our findings show that temperature- and concentration-dependent conductance measurements can help indirectly probe the ion-surface interactions that govern transport and colloidal interactions at the nanoscale─representing a critical step forward in our understanding of charge regulation and adsorption phenomena under nanoconfinement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cody L Ritt
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - J Pedro de Souza
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Michelle G Barsukov
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Shari Yosinski
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Martin Z Bazant
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
- Department of Mathematics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States
| | - Mark A Reed
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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24
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Zuo K, Zhang X, Huang X, Oliveira EF, Guo H, Zhai T, Wang W, Alvarez PJJ, Elimelech M, Ajayan PM, Lou J, Li Q. Ultrahigh resistance of hexagonal boron nitride to mineral scale formation. Nat Commun 2022; 13:4523. [PMID: 35927249 PMCID: PMC9352771 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32193-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Formation of mineral scale on a material surface has profound impact on a wide range of natural processes as well as industrial applications. However, how specific material surface characteristics affect the mineral-surface interactions and subsequent mineral scale formation is not well understood. Here we report the superior resistance of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) to mineral scale formation compared to not only common metal and polymer surfaces but also the highly scaling-resistant graphene, making hBN possibly the most scaling resistant material reported to date. Experimental and simulation results reveal that this ultrahigh scaling-resistance is attributed to the combination of hBN’s atomically-smooth surface, in-plane atomic energy corrugation due to the polar boron-nitrogen bond, and the close match between its interatomic spacing and the size of water molecules. The latter two properties lead to strong polar interactions with water and hence the formation of a dense hydration layer, which strongly hinders the approach of mineral ions and crystals, decreasing both surface heterogeneous nucleation and crystal attachment. Scale formation may have detrimental effects on the properties and functions of materials’ surfaces. Here the authors report the high scaling resistance of hexagonal boron nitride and relate it to the atomic level structure and interaction with water molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kuichang Zuo
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education; College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.,Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, MS 519, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.,NSF Nanosystems Engineering Research Center Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
| | - Xiang Zhang
- NSF Nanosystems Engineering Research Center Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.,Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
| | - Xiaochuan Huang
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, MS 519, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.,NSF Nanosystems Engineering Research Center Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
| | - Eliezer F Oliveira
- Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.,São Paulo State Department of Education, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Hua Guo
- Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
| | - Tianshu Zhai
- Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
| | - Weipeng Wang
- Key Laboratory of Advanced Materials (MOE), School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, PR China.
| | - Pedro J J Alvarez
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, MS 519, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.,NSF Nanosystems Engineering Research Center Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- NSF Nanosystems Engineering Research Center Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.,Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520-8286, USA
| | - Pulickel M Ajayan
- NSF Nanosystems Engineering Research Center Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA. .,Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.
| | - Jun Lou
- NSF Nanosystems Engineering Research Center Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA. .,Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA. .,Department of Chemistry, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.
| | - Qilin Li
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, MS 519, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA. .,NSF Nanosystems Engineering Research Center Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA. .,Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA. .,Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, 77005, USA.
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25
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Huo ZY, Winter LR, Wang XX, Du Y, Wu YH, Hübner U, Hu HY, Elimelech M. Synergistic Nanowire-Enhanced Electroporation and Electrochlorination for Highly Efficient Water Disinfection. Environ Sci Technol 2022; 56:10925-10934. [PMID: 35820052 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c01793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Conventional water disinfection methods such as chlorination typically involve the generation of harmful disinfection byproducts and intensive chemical consumption. Emerging electroporation disinfection techniques using nanowire-enhanced local electric fields inactivate microbes by damaging their outer structures without byproduct formation or chemical dosing. However, this physical-based method suffers from a limited inactivation efficiency under high water flux due to an insufficient contact time. Herein, we integrate electrochlorination with nanowire-enhanced electroporation to achieve a synergistic flow-through process for efficient water disinfection targeting bacteria and viruses. Electroporation at the cathode induces sub-lethal damages on the microbial outer structures. Subsequently, electrogenerated active chlorine at the anode aggravates these electroporation-induced injuries to the level of lethal damage. This sequential flow-through disinfection system achieves complete disinfection (>6.0-log) under a very high water flux of 2.4 × 104 L/(m2 h) with an applied voltage of 2.0 V. This disinfection efficiency is 8 times faster than that of electroporation alone. Further, the specific energy consumption for the disinfection by this novel process is extremely low (8 × 10-4 kW h/m3). Our results demonstrate a promising method for rapid and energy-efficient water disinfection by coupling electroporation with electrochlorination to meet vital needs for pathogen elimination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng-Yang Huo
- School of Environment and Natural Resources, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, PR China
| | - Lea R Winter
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Xiao-Xiong Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Ye Du
- College of Architecture and Environment, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, PR China
| | - Yin-Hu Wu
- Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Microorganism Application and Risk Control (SMARC), School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, PR China
| | - Uwe Hübner
- Chair of Urban Water Systems Engineering, Technical University of Munich, Garching 85748, Germany
| | - Hong-Ying Hu
- Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Microorganism Application and Risk Control (SMARC), School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, PR China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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26
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Abstract
Securing decarbonized economies for energy and commodities will require abundant and widely available green H2. Ubiquitous wastewaters and nontraditional water sources could potentially feed water electrolyzers to produce this green hydrogen without competing with drinking water sources. Herein, we show that the energy and costs of treating nontraditional water sources such as municipal wastewater, industrial and resource extraction wastewater, and seawater are negligible with respect to those for water electrolysis. We also illustrate that the potential hydrogen energy that could be mined from these sources is vast. Based on these findings, we evaluate the implications of small-scale, distributed water electrolysis using disperse nontraditional water sources. Techno-economic analysis and life cycle analysis reveal that the significant contribution of H2 transportation to costs and CO2 emissions results in an optimal levelized cost of hydrogen at small- to moderate-scale water electrolyzer size. The implications of utilizing nontraditional water sources and decentralized or stranded renewable energy for distributed water electrolysis are highlighted for several hydrogen energy storage and chemical feedstock applications. Finally, we discuss challenges and opportunities for mining H2 from nontraditional water sources to achieve resilient and sustainable economies for water and energy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Boreum Lee
- Department of Chemical and
Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Sohum K. Patel
- Department of Chemical and
Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Li Wang
- Department of Chemical and
Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and
Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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27
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Cao T, Rolf J, Wang Z, Violet C, Elimelech M. Distinct impacts of natural organic matter and colloidal particles on gypsum crystallization. Water Res 2022; 218:118500. [PMID: 35512535 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2022.118500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Revised: 04/20/2022] [Accepted: 04/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Gypsum scaling via crystallization is a major obstacle limiting the applications of membrane-based technologies and heat exchangers in engineered systems. Herein, we perform the first comparative investigation on the impacts of natural organic matter (Suwannee River humic acid, SRHA) and colloidal particles on the gypsum crystallization process in terms of induction time and crystal morphology. Results show that the presence of SRHA significantly increases the induction time of gypsum crystallization. Specifically, at a solution saturation index of 4.92, the induction time increases 6.5-fold in the presence of 6 mg/L SRHA, compared to the case without SRHA. SRHA also alters the morphology of the formed calcium sulfate crystals, resulting in a polygon-like shape, differing from the characteristic needle-like shape of gypsum in the absence of additives. These changes in crystal morphology are attributed to the adsorption of SRHA on the gypsum crystal surface, blocking the active sites for gypsum growth. In contrast, in the presence of colloidal particles, the observed induction time of gypsum crystallization either decreases or increases, depending on the competitive interplay between the enhancement effect in the nucleation step and the inhibition effect in the subsequent crystal growth step. Furthermore, the formed gypsum crystals in the presence of colloidal particles exhibit a needle-like morphology similar to the crystals formed in the absence of any additives. Our study provides fundamental understanding of gypsum crystallization in feedwaters containing natural organic matter and colloidal particles, highlighting the importance of feedwater composition in gypsum scaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianchi Cao
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Julianne Rolf
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Zhangxin Wang
- School of Ecology, Environment and Resources, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Camille Violet
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States.
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28
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Rolf J, Cao T, Huang X, Boo C, Li Q, Elimelech M. Inorganic Scaling in Membrane Desalination: Models, Mechanisms, and Characterization Methods. Environ Sci Technol 2022; 56:7484-7511. [PMID: 35666637 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c01858] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Inorganic scaling caused by precipitation of sparingly soluble salts at supersaturation is a common but critical issue, limiting the efficiency of membrane-based desalination and brine management technologies as well as other engineered systems. A wide range of minerals including calcium carbonate, calcium sulfate, and silica precipitate during membrane-based desalination, limiting water recovery and reducing process efficiency. The economic impact of scaling on desalination processes requires understanding of its sources, causes, effects, and control methods. In this Critical Review, we first describe nucleation mechanisms and crystal growth theories, which are fundamental to understanding inorganic scale formation during membrane desalination. We, then, discuss the key mechanisms and factors that govern membrane scaling, including membrane properties, such as surface roughness, charge, and functionality, as well as feedwater characteristics, such as pH, temperature, and ionic strength. We follow with a critical review of current characterization techniques for both homogeneous and heterogeneous nucleation, focusing on the strengths and limitations of each technique to elucidate scale-inducing mechanisms, observe actual crystal growth, and analyze the outcome of scaling behaviors of desalination membranes. We conclude with an outlook on research needs and future research directions to provide guidelines for scale mitigation in water treatment and desalination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julianne Rolf
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Tianchi Cao
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Xiaochuan Huang
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, MS-519, 6100 Main Street, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston 77005, United States
| | - Chanhee Boo
- Water Cycle Research Center, National Agenda Research Division, Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), Seoul, 02792, Republic of Korea
| | - Qilin Li
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, MS-519, 6100 Main Street, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston 77005, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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29
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Ma W, Sun M, Huang D, Chu C, Hedtke T, Wang X, Zhao Y, Kim JH, Elimelech M. Catalytic Membrane with Copper Single-Atom Catalysts for Effective Hydrogen Peroxide Activation and Pollutant Destruction. Environ Sci Technol 2022; 56:8733-8745. [PMID: 35537210 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c08937] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The superior catalytic property of single-atom catalysts (SACs) renders them highly desirable in the energy and environmental fields. However, using SACs for water decontamination is hindered by their limited spatial distribution and density on engineered surfaces and low stability in complex aqueous environments. Herein, we present copper SACs (Cu1) anchored on a thiol-doped reactive membrane for water purification. We demonstrate that the fabricated Cu1 features a Cu-S2 coordination─one copper atom is bridged by two thiolate sulfur atoms, resulting in high-density Cu-SACs on the membrane (2.1 ± 0.3 Cu atoms per nm2). The Cu-SACs activate peroxide to generate hydroxyl radicals, exhibiting fast kinetics, which are 40-fold higher than those of nanoparticulate Cu catalysts. The Cu1-functionalized membrane oxidatively removes organic pollutants from feedwater in the presence of peroxide, achieving efficient water purification. We provide evidence that a dual-site cascade mechanism is responsible for in situ regeneration of Cu1. Specifically, one of the two linked sulfur atoms detaches the oxidized Cu1 while donating one electron, and an adjacent free thiol rebinds the reduced Cu(I)-S pair, retrieving the Cu-S2 coordination on the reactive membrane. This work presents a universal, facile approach for engineering robust SACs on water-treatment membranes and broadens the application of SACs to real-world environmental problems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen Ma
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
- Department of Chemical and Biotechnology Engineering, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Quebec J1K 2R1, Canada
| | - Meng Sun
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Dahong Huang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Chiheng Chu
- Faculty of Agriculture, Life, and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Tayler Hedtke
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Xiaoxiong Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Yumeng Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
| | - Jae-Hong Kim
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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30
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Zhang YJ, Huang GX, Winter LR, Chen JJ, Tian L, Mei SC, Zhang Z, Chen F, Guo ZY, Ji R, You YZ, Li WW, Liu XW, Yu HQ, Elimelech M. Simultaneous nanocatalytic surface activation of pollutants and oxidants for highly efficient water decontamination. Nat Commun 2022; 13:3005. [PMID: 35637224 PMCID: PMC9151758 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-30560-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2022] [Accepted: 05/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Removal of organic micropollutants from water through advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) is hampered by the excessive input of energy and/or chemicals as well as the large amounts of residuals resulting from incomplete mineralization. Herein, we report a new water purification paradigm, the direct oxidative transfer process (DOTP), which enables complete, highly efficient decontamination at very low dosage of oxidants. DOTP differs fundamentally from AOPs and adsorption in its pollutant removal behavior and mechanisms. In DOTP, the nanocatalyst can interact with persulfate to activate the pollutants by lowering their reductive potential energy, which triggers a non-decomposing oxidative transfer of pollutants from the bulk solution to the nanocatalyst surface. By leveraging the activation, stabilization, and accumulation functions of the heterogeneous catalyst, the DOTP can occur spontaneously on the nanocatalyst surface to enable complete removal of pollutants. The process is found to occur for diverse pollutants, oxidants, and nanocatalysts, including various low-cost catalysts. Significantly, DOTP requires no external energy input, has low oxidant consumption, produces no residual byproducts, and performs robustly in real environmental matrices. These favorable features render DOTP an extremely promising nanotechnology platform for water purification. Removal of organic micropollutants from water through advanced oxidation processes is hampered by the excessive input of energy and/or chemicals as well as the large amounts of residuals resulting from incomplete mineralization. Here the authors present a new alternative water purification technology to adsorption and advanced oxidation.
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Heiranian M, DuChanois RM, Ritt CL, Violet C, Elimelech M. Molecular Simulations to Elucidate Transport Phenomena in Polymeric Membranes. Environ Sci Technol 2022; 56:3313-3323. [PMID: 35235312 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c00440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Despite decades of dominance in separation technology, progress in the design and development of high-performance polymer-based membranes has been incremental. Recent advances in materials science and chemical synthesis provide opportunities for molecular-level design of next-generation membrane materials. Such designs necessitate a fundamental understanding of transport and separation mechanisms at the molecular scale. Molecular simulations are important tools that could lead to the development of fundamental structure-property-performance relationships for advancing membrane design. In this Perspective, we assess the application and capability of molecular simulations to understand the mechanisms of ion and water transport across polymeric membranes. Additionally, we discuss the reliability of molecular models in mimicking the structure and chemistry of nanochannels and transport pathways in polymeric membranes. We conclude by providing research directions for resolving key knowledge gaps related to transport phenomena in polymeric membranes and for the construction of structure-property-performance relationships for the design of next-generation membranes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Heiranian
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Ryan M DuChanois
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Cody L Ritt
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Camille Violet
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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33
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DuChanois RM, Heiranian M, Yang J, Porter CJ, Li Q, Zhang X, Verduzco R, Elimelech M. Designing polymeric membranes with coordination chemistry for high-precision ion separations. Sci Adv 2022; 8:eabm9436. [PMID: 35245114 PMCID: PMC8896795 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abm9436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2021] [Accepted: 01/11/2022] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
State-of-the-art polymeric membranes are unable to perform the high-precision ion separations needed for technologies essential to a circular economy and clean energy future. Coordinative interactions are a mechanism to increase sorption of a target species into a membrane, but the effects of these interactions on membrane permeability and selectivity are poorly understood. We use a multilayered polymer membrane to assess how ion-membrane binding energies affect membrane permeability of similarly sized cations: Cu2+, Ni2+, Zn2+, Co2+, and Mg2+. We report that metals with higher binding energy to iminodiacetate groups of the polymer more selectively permeate through the membrane in multisalt solutions than single-salt solutions. In contrast, weaker binding species are precluded from diffusing into the polymer membrane, which leads to passage proportional to binding energy and independent of membrane thickness. Our findings demonstrate that selectivity of polymeric membranes can markedly increase by tailoring ion-membrane binding energy and minimizing membrane thickness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan M. DuChanois
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, TX 77005, USA
| | - Mohammad Heiranian
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
| | - Jason Yang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
| | - Cassandra J. Porter
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
| | - Qilin Li
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, TX 77005, USA
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005, USA
- Department of Materials Science and Nano Engineering, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005, USA
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA
| | - Xuan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of New Membrane Materials, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology; School of Environmental and Biological Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing 210094, China
| | - Rafael Verduzco
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, TX 77005, USA
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, TX 77005, USA
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34
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Uwayid R, Guyes EN, Shocron AN, Gilron J, Elimelech M, Suss ME. Perfect divalent cation selectivity with capacitive deionization. Water Res 2022; 210:117959. [PMID: 34942526 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2021.117959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 12/09/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Capacitive deionization (CDI) is an emerging membraneless water desalination technology based on storing ions in charged electrodes by electrosorption. Due to unique selectivity mechanisms, CDI has been investigated towards ion-selective separations such as water softening, nutrient recovery, and production of irrigation water. Especially promising is the use of activated microporous carbon electrodes due to their low cost and wide availability at commercial scales. We show here, both theoretically and experimentally, that sulfonated activated carbon electrodes enable the first demonstration of perfect divalent cation selectivity in CDI, where we define "perfect" as significant removal of the divalent cation with zero removal of the competing monovalent cation. For example, for a feedwater of 15 mM NaCl and 3 mM CaCl2, and charging from 0.4 V to 1.2 V, we show our cell can remove 127 μmol per gram carbon of divalent Ca2+, while slightly expelling competing monovalent Na+ (-13.2 μmol/g). This separation can be achieved with excellent efficiency, as we show both theoretically and experimentally a calcium charge efficiency above unity, and an experimental energy consumption of less than 0.1 kWh/m3. We further demonstrate a low-infrastructure technique to measure cation selectivity, using ion-selective electrodes and the extended Onsager-Fuoss model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rana Uwayid
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Eric N Guyes
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Amit N Shocron
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Jack Gilron
- The Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, United States
| | - Matthew E Suss
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Wolfson Department of Chemical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Grand Technion Energy Program, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
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35
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Du Y, Wang Z, Cooper NJ, Gilron J, Elimelech M. Module-scale analysis of low-salt-rejection reverse osmosis: Design guidelines and system performance. Water Res 2022; 209:117936. [PMID: 34922102 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2021.117936] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Revised: 12/01/2021] [Accepted: 12/02/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Low-salt-rejection reverse osmosis (LSRRO) is a novel reverse osmosis (RO)-based technology that can highly concentrate brines using moderate operating pressures. In this study, we investigate the performance of LSRRO membrane modules and systems using module-scale analysis. Specifically, we correlate the observed salt rejection of an LSRRO module with the water and salt permeabilities of the RO membrane. We then elaborate the impact of membrane properties and operating conditions on the performance of a 2-stage LSRRO, providing design guidelines for LSRRO systems. We further compare the performance of 2-stage and 3-stage LSRRO systems, showing that an LSRRO system with more stages is not always favored due to a larger energy consumption. The performance of a 3-stage LSRRO in treating different feed solutions for minimal/zero liquid discharge (MLD/ZLD) applications is then evaluated. Based on our results, when treating feed waters with a relatively low salinity (e.g., 0.1 M or ∼5,800 mg L-1 NaCl), the 3-stage LSRRO can achieve a concentrated brine that can be directly sent to the thermal brine crystallizers (i.e., brine concentration > 4 M or ∼240,000 mg L-1 NaCl), and the corresponding specific energy consumption (SEC) is only ∼3 kWh m-3. When treating feed waters with a relatively high salinity (e.g., 0.6 M or ∼35,000 mg L-1 NaCl), the brine from the 3-stage LSRRO can be ∼80 % more concentrated compared to that from conventional RO, while the corresponding SEC does not exceed 6 kWh m-3. Our results demonstrate that LSRRO can substantially advance minimal/zero liquid discharge (MLD/ZLD) applications because it can significantly minimize the use of thermal brine concentrators. We conclude with a discussion on the practicability of LSRRO and highlight future research needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuhao Du
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Zhangxin Wang
- Key Laboratory for City Cluster Environmental Safety and Green Development of the Ministry of Education, Institute of Environmental and Ecological Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510006, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Water Quality Improvement and Ecological Restoration for Watershed, Institute of Environmental and Ecological Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510006, China.
| | - Nathanial J Cooper
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Jack Gilron
- The Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, 84990, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States.
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Ritt CL, Liu M, Pham TA, Epsztein R, Kulik HJ, Elimelech M. Machine learning reveals key ion selectivity mechanisms in polymeric membranes with subnanometer pores. Sci Adv 2022; 8:eabl5771. [PMID: 35030018 PMCID: PMC8759746 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abl5771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Designing single-species selective membranes for high-precision separations requires a fundamental understanding of the molecular interactions governing solute transport. Here, we comprehensively assess molecular-level features that influence the separation of 18 different anions by nanoporous cellulose acetate membranes. Our analysis identifies the limitations of bulk solvation characteristics to explain ion transport, highlighted by the poor correlation between hydration energy and the measured permselectivity (R2 = 0.37). Entropy-enthalpy compensation, spanning 40 kilojoules per mole, leads to a free-energy barrier (∆G‡) variation of only ~8 kilojoules per mole across all anions. We apply machine learning to elucidate descriptors for energetic barriers from a set of 126 collected features. Notably, electrostatic features account for 75% of the overall features used to describe ∆G‡, despite the relatively uncharged state of cellulose acetate. Our work presents an approach for studying ion transport across nanoporous membranes that could enable the design of ion-selective membranes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cody L. Ritt
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
| | - Mingjie Liu
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Tuan Anh Pham
- Quantum Simulations Group, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA 94550, USA
| | - Razi Epsztein
- Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Heather J. Kulik
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
- Corresponding author. (M.E.); (H.J.K.)
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
- Corresponding author. (M.E.); (H.J.K.)
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38
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Zhang S, Hedtke T, Wang L, Wang X, Cao T, Elimelech M, Kim JH. Engineered Nanoconfinement Accelerating Spontaneous Manganese-Catalyzed Degradation of Organic Contaminants. Environ Sci Technol 2021; 55:16708-16715. [PMID: 34852199 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c06551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Manganese(III/IV) oxide minerals are known to spontaneously degrade organic pollutants in nature. However, the kinetics are too slow to be useful for engineered water treatment processes. Herein, we demonstrate that nanoscale Mn3O4 particles under nanoscale spatial confinement (down to 3-5 nm) can significantly accelerate the kinetics of pollutant degradation, nearly 3 orders of magnitude faster compared to the same reaction in the unconfined bulk phase. We first employed an anodized aluminum oxide scaffold with uniform channel dimensions for experimental and computational studies. We found that the observed kinetic enhancement resulted from the increased surface area of catalysts exposed to the reaction, as well as the increased local proton concentration at the Mn3O4 surface and subsequent acceleration of acid-catalyzed reactions even at neutral pH in bulk. We further demonstrate that a reactive Mn3O4-functionalized ceramic ultrafiltration membrane, a more suitable scaffold for realistic water treatment, achieved nearly complete removal of various phenolic and aniline pollutants, operated under a common ultrafiltration water flux. Our findings mark an important advance toward the development of catalytic membranes that can degrade pollutants in addition to their intrinsic function as a physical separation barrier, especially since they are based on accelerating natural catalytic pathways that do not require any chemical addition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuo Zhang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Ave, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Tayler Hedtke
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Ave, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Li Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Ave, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Xiaoxiong Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Ave, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Tianchi Cao
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Ave, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Ave, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Jae-Hong Kim
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Ave, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
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Wang L, Cao T, Dykstra JE, Porada S, Biesheuvel PM, Elimelech M. Salt and Water Transport in Reverse Osmosis Membranes: Beyond the Solution-Diffusion Model. Environ Sci Technol 2021; 55:16665-16675. [PMID: 34879196 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c05649] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the salt-water separation mechanisms of reverse osmosis (RO) membranes is critical for the further development and optimization of RO technology. The solution-diffusion (SD) model is widely used to describe water and salt transport in RO, but it does not describe the intricate transport mechanisms of water molecules and ions through the membrane. In this study, we develop an ion transport model for RO, referred to as the solution-friction model, by rigorously considering the mechanisms of partitioning and the interactions among water, salt ions, and the membrane. Ion transport through the membrane is described by the extended Nernst-Planck equation, with the consideration of frictions between the species (i.e., ion, water, and membrane matrix). Water flow through the membrane is governed by the hydraulic pressure gradient and the friction between the water and membrane matrix as well as the friction between water and ions. The model is validated using experimental measurements of salt rejection and permeate water flux in a lab-scale, cross-flow RO setup. We then investigate the effects of feed salt concentration and hydraulic pressure on salt permeability, demonstrating strong dependence of salt permeability on feed salt concentration and applied pressure, starkly disparate from the SD model. Lastly, we develop a framework to analyze the pressure drop distribution across the membrane, demonstrating that cross-membrane transport dominates the overall pressure drop in RO, in marked contrast to the SD model that assumes no pressure drop across the membrane.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Tianchi Cao
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Jouke E Dykstra
- Environmental Technology, Wageningen University, Bornse Weilanden 9, 6708 WG Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Slawomir Porada
- Wetsus, European Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology, Oostergoweg 9, 8911 MA Leeuwarden, The Netherlands
| | - P M Biesheuvel
- Wetsus, European Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology, Oostergoweg 9, 8911 MA Leeuwarden, The Netherlands
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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Wang K, Wang X, Januszewski B, Liu Y, Li D, Fu R, Elimelech M, Huang X. Tailored design of nanofiltration membranes for water treatment based on synthesis-property-performance relationships. Chem Soc Rev 2021; 51:672-719. [PMID: 34932047 DOI: 10.1039/d0cs01599g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Tailored design of high-performance nanofiltration (NF) membranes is desirable because the requirements for membrane performance, particularly ion/salt rejection and selectivity, differ among the various applications of NF technology ranging from drinking water production to resource mining. However, this customization greatly relies on a comprehensive understanding of the influence of membrane fabrication methods and conditions on membrane properties and the relationships between the membrane structural and physicochemical properties and membrane performance. Since the inception of NF, much progress has been made in forming the foundation of tailored design of NF membranes and the underlying governing principles. This progress includes theories regarding NF mass transfer and solute rejection, further exploitation of the classical interfacial polymerization technique, and development of novel materials and membrane fabrication methods. In this critical review, we first summarize the progress made in controllable design of NF membrane properties in recent years from the perspective of optimizing interfacial polymerization techniques and adopting new manufacturing processes and materials. We then discuss the property-performance relationships based on solvent/solute mass transfer theories and mathematical models, and draw conclusions on membrane structural and physicochemical parameter regulation by modifying the fabrication process to improve membrane separation performance. Next, existing and potential applications of these NF membranes in water treatment processes are systematically discussed according to the different separation requirements. Finally, we point out the prospects and challenges of tailored design of NF membranes for water treatment applications. This review bridges the long-existing gaps between the pressing demand for suitable NF membranes from the industrial community and the surge of publications by the scientific community in recent years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kunpeng Wang
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment and International Joint Laboratory on Low Carbon Clean Energy Innovation, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China.
| | - Xiaomao Wang
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment and International Joint Laboratory on Low Carbon Clean Energy Innovation, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China.
| | - Brielle Januszewski
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
| | - Yanling Liu
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment and International Joint Laboratory on Low Carbon Clean Energy Innovation, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China. .,State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, P. R. China
| | - Danyang Li
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment and International Joint Laboratory on Low Carbon Clean Energy Innovation, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China.
| | - Ruoyu Fu
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment and International Joint Laboratory on Low Carbon Clean Energy Innovation, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China.
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8286, USA
| | - Xia Huang
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment and International Joint Laboratory on Low Carbon Clean Energy Innovation, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, P. R. China.
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Abstract
Dissolved silica is a major concern for a variety of industrial processes owing to its tendency to form complex scales that severely deteriorate system performance. In this work, we present a pretreatment technology using a Joule-heated sponge to rapidly remove silica from saline waters through adsorption, thereby effectively mitigating silica scaling in subsequent membrane desalination processes. The adsorbent sponge is fabricated by functionalizing two-dimensional layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanosheets on a porous, conductive stainless-steel sponge. With the application of an external voltage of 4 V, the Joule-heated sponge achieves 85% silica removal and 95% sponge regeneration within 15 min, which is much more efficient than its counterpart without Joule-heating (360 min for silica adsorption and 90 min for sponge regeneration). Material characterization and reaction kinetics analysis reveal that electrostatic interactions and "memory effect"-induced intercalation are the primary mechanisms for silica removal by the LDH nanosheets. Moreover, Joule-heating reduces the boundary layer resistance on nanosheets and facilitates intraparticle diffusion of dissolved silica, thereby increasing silica removal kinetics. Joule-heating also enhances the release of silicate ions during the regeneration stage through exchange with the surrounding anions (OH- or CO32-), resulting in a more efficient sponge regeneration. Pretreatment of silica-rich feedwaters by the Joule-heated sponge effectively reduces reverse osmosis membrane scaling by amorphous silica scale, demonstrating great potential for silica scaling control in a broad range of engineered processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen Ma
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), Houston, Texas 77005, United States
| | - Xinglin Lu
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), Houston, Texas 77005, United States
- CAS Key Laboratory of Urban Pollutant Conversion, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Yan-Fang Guan
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), Houston, Texas 77005, United States
- CAS Key Laboratory of Urban Pollutant Conversion, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), Houston, Texas 77005, United States
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Zhou X, Heiranian M, Yang M, Epsztein R, Gong K, White CE, Hu S, Kim JH, Elimelech M. Selective Fluoride Transport in Subnanometer TiO 2 Pores. ACS Nano 2021; 15:16828-16838. [PMID: 34637268 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.1c07210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Synthesizing nanopores which mimic the functionality of ion-selective biological channels has been a challenging yet promising approach to advance technologies for precise ion-ion separations. Inspired by the facilitated fluoride (F-) permeation in the biological fluoride channel, we designed a highly fluoride-selective TiO2 film using the atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique. The subnanometer voids within the fabricated TiO2 film (4 Å < d < 12 Å, with two distinct peaks at 5.5 and 6.5 Å), created by the hindered diffusion of ALD precursors (d = 7 Å), resulted in more than eight times faster permeation of sodium fluoride compared to other sodium halides. We show that the specific Ti-F interactions compensate for the energy penalty of F- dehydration during the partitioning of F- ions into the pore and allow for an intrapore accumulation of F- ions. Concomitantly, the accumulation of F- ions on the pore walls also enhances the transport of sodium (Na+) cations due to electrostatic interactions. Molecular dynamics simulations probing the ion concentration and mobility within the TiO2 pore further support our proposed mechanisms for the selective F- transport and enhanced Na+ permeation in the TiO2 film. Overall, our work provides insights toward the design of ion-selective nanopores using the ALD technique.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuechen Zhou
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Mohammad Heiranian
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Meiqi Yang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Razi Epsztein
- Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Technion City, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Kai Gong
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, United States
| | - Claire E White
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, United States
| | - Shu Hu
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Jae-Hong Kim
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
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43
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Lu C, Hu C, Ritt CL, Hua X, Sun J, Xia H, Liu Y, Li DW, Ma B, Elimelech M, Qu J. In Situ Characterization of Dehydration during Ion Transport in Polymeric Nanochannels. J Am Chem Soc 2021; 143:14242-14252. [PMID: 34431669 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.1c05765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The transport of hydrated ions across nanochannels is central to biological systems and membrane-based applications, yet little is known about their hydrated structure during transport due to the absence of in situ characterization techniques. Herein, we report experimentally resolved ion dehydration during transmembrane transport using modified in situ liquid ToF-SIMS in combination with MD simulations for a mechanistic reasoning. Notably, complete dehydration was not necessary for transport to occur across membranes with sub-nanometer pores. Partial shedding of water molecules from ion solvation shells, observed as a decrease in the average hydration number, allowed the alkali-metal ions studied here (lithium, sodium, and potassium) to permeate membranes with pores smaller than their solvated size. We find that ions generally cannot hold more than two water molecules during this sterically limited transport. In nanopores larger than the size of the solvation shell, we show that ionic mobility governs the ion hydration number distribution. Viscous effects, such as interactions with carboxyl groups inside the membrane, preferentially hinder the transport of the mono- and dihydrates. Our novel technique for studying ion solvation in situ represents a significant technological leap for the nanofluidics field and may enable important advances in ion separation, biosensing, and battery applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenghai Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Aquatic Chemistry, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, People's Republic of China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, People's Republic of China
| | - Chengzhi Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Aquatic Chemistry, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, People's Republic of China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, People's Republic of China
| | - Cody L Ritt
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Xin Hua
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, People's Republic of China
| | - Jingqiu Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Aquatic Chemistry, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, People's Republic of China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, People's Republic of China
| | - Hailun Xia
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, People's Republic of China
| | - Yingya Liu
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, People's Republic of China
| | - Da-Wei Li
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, People's Republic of China
| | - Baiwen Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Aquatic Chemistry, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, People's Republic of China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, People's Republic of China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Jiuhui Qu
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Aquatic Chemistry, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, People's Republic of China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, People's Republic of China
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DuChanois RM, Porter CJ, Violet C, Verduzco R, Elimelech M. Membrane Materials for Selective Ion Separations at the Water-Energy Nexus. Adv Mater 2021; 33:e2101312. [PMID: 34396602 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202101312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2021] [Revised: 04/01/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Synthetic polymer membranes are enabling components in key technologies at the water-energy nexus, including desalination and energy conversion, because of their high water/salt selectivity or ionic conductivity. However, many applications at the water-energy nexus require ion selectivity, or separation of specific ionic species from other similar species. Here, the ion selectivity of conventional polymeric membrane materials is assessed and recent progress in enhancing selective transport via tailored free volume elements and ion-membrane interactions is described. In view of the limitations of polymeric membranes, three material classes-porous crystalline materials, 2D materials, and discrete biomimetic channels-are highlighted as possible candidates for ion-selective membranes owing to their molecular-level control over physical and chemical properties. Lastly, research directions and critical challenges for developing bioinspired membranes with molecular recognition are provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan M DuChanois
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520-8286, USA
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
| | - Cassandra J Porter
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520-8286, USA
| | - Camille Violet
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520-8286, USA
| | - Rafael Verduzco
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science and NanoEngineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520-8286, USA
- Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment (NEWT), 6100 Main Street, MS 6398, Houston, TX, 77005, USA
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45
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Wang Z, Feng D, Chen Y, He D, Elimelech M. Comparison of Energy Consumption of Osmotically Assisted Reverse Osmosis and Low-Salt-Rejection Reverse Osmosis for Brine Management. Environ Sci Technol 2021; 55:10714-10723. [PMID: 34269563 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c01638] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Minimum and zero liquid discharge (MLD/ZLD) are emerging brine management strategies that attract heightened attention. Although conventional reverse osmosis (RO) can improve the energy efficiency of MLD/ZLD processes, its application is limited by the maximum hydraulic pressure (ΔPmax) that can be applied in current membrane modules. To overcome such limitation, novel RO-based technologies, including osmotically assisted RO (OARO) and low-salt-rejection RO (LSRRO), have been proposed. Herein, we utilize process modeling to systematically compare the energy consumption of OARO and LSRRO for MLD/ZLD applications. Our modeling results show that the specific energy consumption (SEC) of LSRRO is lower (by up to ∼30%) than that of OARO for concentrating moderately saline feed waters (<∼35,000 mg/L TDS) to meet MLD/ZLD goals, whereas the SEC of OARO is lower (by up to ∼40%) than that of LSSRO for concentrating higher salinity feed waters (>∼70,000 mg/L TDS). However, by implementing more stages and/or an elevated ΔPmax, LSRRO has the potential to outperform OARO energetically for treating high-salinity feed waters. Notably, the SEC of both OARO and LSRRO could be 50% lower than that of mechanical vapor compressor, the commonly used brine concentrator in MLD/ZLD applications. We conclude with a discussion on the practicability of OARO and LSRRO based on membrane module availability and capital cost, suggesting that LSRRO could potentially be more feasible than OARO.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhangxin Wang
- Institute of Environmental and Ecological Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 511458, China
| | - Dejun Feng
- Institute of Environmental and Ecological Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
| | - Yuanmiaoliang Chen
- NUS Graduate School for Integrative Science and Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117456, Singapore
| | - Di He
- Institute of Environmental and Ecological Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510006, China
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 511458, China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
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46
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Zhang S, Hedtke T, Zhu Q, Sun M, Weon S, Zhao Y, Stavitski E, Elimelech M, Kim JH. Membrane-Confined Iron Oxychloride Nanocatalysts for Highly Efficient Heterogeneous Fenton Water Treatment. Environ Sci Technol 2021; 55:9266-9275. [PMID: 34152734 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c01391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Heterogeneous advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) allow for the destruction of aqueous organic pollutants via oxidation by hydroxyl radicals (•OH). However, practical treatment scenarios suffer from the low availability of short-lived •OH in aqueous bulk, due to both mass transfer limitations and quenching by water constituents, such as natural organic matter (NOM). Herein, we overcome these challenges by loading iron oxychloride catalysts within the pores of a ceramic ultrafiltration membrane, resulting in an internal heterogeneous Fenton reaction that can degrade organics in complex water matrices with pH up to 6.2. With •OH confined inside the nanopores (∼ 20 nm), this membrane reactor completely removed various organic pollutants with water fluxes of up to 100 L m-2 h-1 (equivalent to a retention time of 10 s). This membrane, with a pore size that excludes NOM (>300 kDa), selectively exposed smaller organics to •OH within the pores under confinement and showed excellent resiliency to representative water matrices (simulated surface water and sand filtration effluent samples). Moreover, the membrane exhibited sustained AOPs (>24 h) and could be regenerated for multiple cycles. Our results suggest the feasibility of exploiting ultrafiltration membrane-based AOP platforms for organic pollutant degradation in complex water scenarios.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuo Zhang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Tayler Hedtke
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Qianhong Zhu
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Meng Sun
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Seunghyun Weon
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
- School of Health and Environmental Science, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Republic of Korea
| | - Yumeng Zhao
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
- State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
| | - Eli Stavitski
- National Synchrotron Light Source II, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
| | - Jae-Hong Kim
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 17 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States
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47
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Lu X, Elimelech M. Fabrication of desalination membranes by interfacial polymerization: history, current efforts, and future directions. Chem Soc Rev 2021; 50:6290-6307. [PMID: 34100049 DOI: 10.1039/d0cs00502a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 38.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Membrane desalination is a promising technology for addressing the global challenge of water scarcity by augmenting fresh water supply. Continuous progress in this technology relies on development of membrane materials. The state-of-the-art membranes used in a wide range of desalination applications are polyamide thin-film composite (TFC) membranes which are formed by interfacial polymerization (IP). Despite the wide use of such membranes in desalination, their real-world application is still hampered by several technical obstacles. These challenges of the TFC membranes largely stem from the inherent limitations of the polyamide chemistry, as well as the IP reaction mechanisms. In the past decade, we have witnessed substantial progress in the understanding of polyamide formation mechanisms and the development of new IP strategies that can potentially lead to the redesign of TFC membranes. In this Tutorial, we first present a brief history of the development of desalination membranes and highlight the major challenges of the existing TFC membranes. We then proceed to discuss the pros and cons of emerging IP-based fabrication strategies aiming at improving the performance of TFC membranes. Next, we present technical obstacles and recent efforts in the characterization of TFC membranes to enable fundamental understanding of relevant mechanisms. We conclude with a discussion of the current gap between industrial needs and academic research in designing high-performance TFC membranes, and provide an outlook on future research directions for advancing IP-based fabrication processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinglin Lu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Urban Pollutant Conversion, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
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48
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Fan W, Li Y, Wang C, Duan Y, Huo Y, Januszewski B, Sun M, Huo M, Elimelech M. Enhanced Photocatalytic Water Decontamination by Micro-Nano Bubbles: Measurements and Mechanisms. Environ Sci Technol 2021; 55:7025-7033. [PMID: 33944552 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c08787] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Despite recent advancements in photocatalysis enabled by materials science innovations, the application of photocatalysts in water treatment is still hampered due to low overall efficiency. Herein, we present a TiO2 photocatalytic process with significantly enhanced efficiency by the introduction of micro-nano bubbles (MNBs). Notably, the removal rate of a model organic contaminant (methylene blue, MB) in an air MNB-assisted photocatalytic degradation (PCD) process was 41-141% higher than that obtained in conventional macrobubble (MaB)-assisted PCD under identical conditions. Experimental observations and supporting mechanistic modeling suggest that the enhanced photocatalytic degradation is attributed to the combined effects of increased dissolution of oxygen, improved colloidal stability and dispersion of the TiO2 nanocatalysts, and interfacial photoelectric effects of TiO2/MNB suspensions. The maximum dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration of the MNB suspension (i.e., 11.7 mg/L) was 32% higher than that of an MaB-aerated aqueous solution (i.e., 8.8 mg/L), thus accelerating the hole oxidation of H2O on TiO2. We further confirmed that the MNBs induced unique light-scattering effects, consequently increasing the optical path length in the TiO2/MNB suspension by 7.6%. A force balance model confirmed that a three-phase contact was formed on the surface of the bubble-TiO2 complex, which promoted high complex stability and PCD performance. Overall, this study demonstrates the enhanced photocatalytic water decontamination by MNBs and provides the underlying mechanisms for the process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Fan
- School of Environment, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130117, China
| | - Yuhang Li
- School of Environment, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130117, China
| | - Chunliang Wang
- School of Physics, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130024, China
| | - Yutong Duan
- School of Environment, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130117, China
| | - Yang Huo
- School of Physics, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130024, China
| | - Brielle Januszewski
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Meng Sun
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
| | - Mingxin Huo
- School of Environment, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130117, China
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8286, United States
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Vu MT, Nguyen LN, Hasan Johir MA, Zhang X, Nghiem LD, Elimelech M. Biogas sparging to control fouling and enhance resource recovery from anaerobically digested sludge centrate by forward osmosis. J Memb Sci 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.memsci.2021.119176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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50
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Abstract
In recent years, the development of nanopore-based membranes has revitalized the prospect of harvesting salinity gradient (blue) energy. In this study, we systematically analyze the energetic performance of nanopore-based power generation (NPG) at various process scales, beginning with a single nanopore, followed by a multipore membrane coupon, and ending with a full-scale system. We confirm the high power densities attainable by a single nanopore and demonstrate that, at the coupon scale and above, concentration polarization severely hinders the power density of NPG, revealing the common, yet significant, error in linearly extrapolating single-pore performance to multipore membranes. Through our consideration of concentration polarization, we also importantly show that the development of materials with exceptional nanopore properties provides limited enhancement of practical process performance. For a full-scale NPG membrane module, we find an inherent tradeoff between power density and thermodynamic energy efficiency, whereby achieving a high power density sacrifices the energy efficiency. Furthermore, we derive a simple expression for the theoretical maximum energy efficiency of NPG, showing it is solely related to the membrane selectivity (i.e., S2/2). Through this relation, it is apparent that the energy efficiency of NPG is limited to only 50% (for a completely selective membrane, i.e., S = 1), reinforcing our optimistic full-scale simulations which result in a (practical) maximum energy efficiency of 42%. Finally, we assess the net extractable energy of a full-scale NPG system which mixes river water and seawater by including the energy losses from pretreatment and pumping, revealing that the NPG process-both in its current state of development and in the case of highly optimistic performance with minimized external energy losses-is not viable for power generation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, P.O. Box 208268, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Zhangxin Wang
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, P.O. Box 208268, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Sohum K Patel
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, P.O. Box 208268, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Shihong Lin
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37235-1831, United States
| | - Menachem Elimelech
- Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Yale University, P.O. Box 208268, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
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