A smart gating nanocellulose membrane showing selective separation and self-cleaning performance

Jianfeng Xi; Yuanyuan Zhang; Yanling Lou; Youlu Chu; Hongqi Dai; Zhaoyang Xu; Huining Xiao; Weibing Wu

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.125236

A smart gating nanocellulose membrane showing selective separation and self-cleaning performance

Int J Biol Macromol. 2023 Jul 31:244:125236. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.125236. Epub 2023 Jun 9.

Authors

Jianfeng Xi¹, Yuanyuan Zhang¹, Yanling Lou¹, Youlu Chu¹, Hongqi Dai¹, Zhaoyang Xu², Huining Xiao³, Weibing Wu⁴

Affiliations

¹ Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, International Innovation Center for Forest Chemicals and Materials, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China.
² College of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China.
³ Department of Chemical Engineering, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB E3B 5A3, Canada.
⁴ Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, International Innovation Center for Forest Chemicals and Materials, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China. Electronic address: wbwu@njfu.edu.cn.

PMID: 37302630
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.125236

Abstract

A smart gating membrane based on thermal-sensitive poly (N-isopropyl acrylamide) (PNIPAM)-grafted nanocellulose and carbon nanotube (CNT) was prepared. The presence of PNIPAM shell on cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) endow the composite membrane with thermal responsiveness. By external stimulation, an increase temperature from 10 °C to 70 °C allows the average pore size of the membrane to be controlled from 28 nm to 110 nm, as well as the water permeance from 440 L·m^-2·h^-1·bar^-1 to 1088 L·m^-2·h^-1·bar^-1. The gating ratio of the membrane can reach 2.47. The photothermal effect of CNT rapidly warms up the membrane to the lowest critical solution temperature in the water, avoiding the constraint that the whole water phase cannot be heated throughout the practical use process. The membrane can precisely control the nanoparticles to concentrate at 25.3 nm, 47.7 nm or 102 nm by adjust the temperature. In addition, the water permeance can be restored to 370 L·m^-2·h^-1·bar^-1 by washing the membrane under light. The smart gating membrane has a wide application in substance multi-stage separation and selective separation, and it can realize self-cleaning.

Keywords: Photo response; Smart gating membrane; Thermal response.

MeSH terms

Cellulose
Cold Temperature
Nanoparticles*
Temperature
Water

Substances

Cellulose
Water