Superhydrophobic Carbon Nanotube Network Membranes for Membrane Distillation: High-Throughput Performance and Transport Mechanism.
Environ Sci Technol
; 56(9): 5775-5785, 2022 05 03.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35465657
ABSTRACT
Despite increasing sustainable water purification, current desalination membranes still suffer from insufficient permeability and treatment efficiency, greatly hindering extensive practical applications. In this work, we provide a new membrane design protocol and molecule-level mechanistic understanding of vapor transport for the treatment of hypersaline waters via a membrane distillation process by rationally fabricating more robust metal-based carbon nanotube (CNT) network membranes, featuring a superhydrophobic superporous surface (80.0 ± 2.3% surface porosity). With highly permeable ductile metal hollow fibers as substrates, the construction of a superhydrophobic (water contact angle â¼170°) CNT network layer endows the membranes with not only almost perfect salt rejection (over 99.9%) but a promising water flux (43.6 L·m-2·h-1), which outperforms most existing inorganic distillation membranes. Both experimental and molecular dynamics simulation results indicate that such an enhanced water flux can be ascribed to an ultra-low liquid-solid contact interface (â¼3.23%), allowing water vapor to rapidly transport across the membrane structure via a combined mechanism of Knudsen diffusion (more dominant) and viscous flow while efficiently repelling high-salinity feed via forming a Cassie-Baxter state. A more hydrophobic surface is more in favor of not only water desorption from the CNT outer surface but superfast and frictionless water vapor transport. By constructing a new superhydrophobic triple-phase interface, the conceptional design strategy proposed in this work can be expected to be extended to other membrane material systems as well as more water treatment applications.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Purificação da Água
/
Nanotubos de Carbono
Tipo de estudo:
Guideline
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Environ Sci Technol
Ano de publicação:
2022
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
China