Novel polyamide nanofiltration membrane through Fe3+-tannic acid coordinated reverse interfacial polymerization for high-efficiency Mg2+/Li+ separation

doi:10.1016/j.cjche.2025.04.022

中国化学工程学报 ›› 2025, Vol. 87 ›› Issue (11): 381-390.DOI: 10.1016/j.cjche.2025.04.022

Novel polyamide nanofiltration membrane through Fe³⁺-tannic acid coordinated reverse interfacial polymerization for high-efficiency Mg²⁺/Li⁺ separation

Min Li^1,2, Dongsheng Yu^1,3, Jiangcheng Li¹, Wei Gao¹, Xiaocui Zhang¹, Huacong Zhou³, Qinghui Shou¹, Huizhou Liu^1,2

1. Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shandong Energy Institute, Qingdao New Energy Shandong Laboratory, Qingdao 266101, China;
2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China;
3. College of Chemical Engineering, Inner Mongolia University of Technology, Hohhot 010051, China

收稿日期:2025-02-25 修回日期:2025-04-08 接受日期:2025-04-25 出版日期:2025-11-28 发布日期:2025-07-02
通讯作者: Jiangcheng Li,E-mail:lijc@qibebt.ac.cn;Qinghui Shou,E-mail:shouqh@qibebt.ac.cn
基金资助:
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (22138012), Shandong Energy Institute (SEI I202144, SEI I202133).

Novel polyamide nanofiltration membrane through Fe³⁺-tannic acid coordinated reverse interfacial polymerization for high-efficiency Mg²⁺/Li⁺ separation

Min Li^1,2, Dongsheng Yu^1,3, Jiangcheng Li¹, Wei Gao¹, Xiaocui Zhang¹, Huacong Zhou³, Qinghui Shou¹, Huizhou Liu^1,2

1. Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shandong Energy Institute, Qingdao New Energy Shandong Laboratory, Qingdao 266101, China;
2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China;
3. College of Chemical Engineering, Inner Mongolia University of Technology, Hohhot 010051, China

Received:2025-02-25 Revised:2025-04-08 Accepted:2025-04-25 Online:2025-11-28 Published:2025-07-02
Contact: Jiangcheng Li,E-mail:lijc@qibebt.ac.cn;Qinghui Shou,E-mail:shouqh@qibebt.ac.cn
Supported by:
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (22138012), Shandong Energy Institute (SEI I202144, SEI I202133).

摘要/Abstract

摘要： Lithium extraction from salt lakes has become an environmentally friendly way of lithium acquisition. The development of new nanofiltration membrane is significant to enhance the separation efficiency of lithium from a high Mg²⁺/Li⁺ mass ratio brine. In this work, Fe³⁺/tannic acid-trimesoyl chloride-polyetherimide (Fe³⁺/TA-TMC-PEI) composite nanofiltration membranes were designed to study the separation performance of Mg²⁺/Li⁺ in a high Mg²⁺/Li ⁺ mass ratio simulated brine. Fe³⁺/TA separation layer was introduced through the rapid assembly of tannic acid and coordination mediated by Fe³⁺ on polyethersulfone supporting membrane. The polyamide layer was prepared through the reverse interfacial polymerization between TMC and PEI. The composite nanofiltration membrane has high cross-linking degree and positive charge and low pore size. The best performance of the composite nanofiltration membrane was obtained with 0.3% (mass) Fe³⁺ solution, 0.9% (mass) TA, and 2 g·L^-1 PEI 600 ethanol solution. The retention of bivalent ions was significantly greater than that of monvalent ions in single salt solution. The Fe³⁺/TA-TMC-PEI composite nanofiltration membrane showed a stable separation factor of 12.02 when the Mg²⁺/Li⁺ mass ratio was 120 in the mixed salt solution. This work deepens the understanding of the mechanism of lithium extraction in magnesia-lithium system, and the modification strategy provides a possible guide for the design of Mg²⁺/Li⁺ separation membranes with practical potential from the perspective of lithium extraction technology.

关键词: Nanofiltration membrane, Interfacial polymerization, Polyamide, Separation of magnesium and lithium

Abstract: Lithium extraction from salt lakes has become an environmentally friendly way of lithium acquisition. The development of new nanofiltration membrane is significant to enhance the separation efficiency of lithium from a high Mg²⁺/Li⁺ mass ratio brine. In this work, Fe³⁺/tannic acid-trimesoyl chloride-polyetherimide (Fe³⁺/TA-TMC-PEI) composite nanofiltration membranes were designed to study the separation performance of Mg²⁺/Li⁺ in a high Mg²⁺/Li ⁺ mass ratio simulated brine. Fe³⁺/TA separation layer was introduced through the rapid assembly of tannic acid and coordination mediated by Fe³⁺ on polyethersulfone supporting membrane. The polyamide layer was prepared through the reverse interfacial polymerization between TMC and PEI. The composite nanofiltration membrane has high cross-linking degree and positive charge and low pore size. The best performance of the composite nanofiltration membrane was obtained with 0.3% (mass) Fe³⁺ solution, 0.9% (mass) TA, and 2 g·L^-1 PEI 600 ethanol solution. The retention of bivalent ions was significantly greater than that of monvalent ions in single salt solution. The Fe³⁺/TA-TMC-PEI composite nanofiltration membrane showed a stable separation factor of 12.02 when the Mg²⁺/Li⁺ mass ratio was 120 in the mixed salt solution. This work deepens the understanding of the mechanism of lithium extraction in magnesia-lithium system, and the modification strategy provides a possible guide for the design of Mg²⁺/Li⁺ separation membranes with practical potential from the perspective of lithium extraction technology.

Key words: Nanofiltration membrane, Interfacial polymerization, Polyamide, Separation of magnesium and lithium

Min Li, Dongsheng Yu, Jiangcheng Li, Wei Gao, Xiaocui Zhang, Huacong Zhou, Qinghui Shou, Huizhou Liu. Novel polyamide nanofiltration membrane through Fe³⁺-tannic acid coordinated reverse interfacial polymerization for high-efficiency Mg²⁺/Li⁺ separation[J]. 中国化学工程学报, 2025, 87(11): 381-390.

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Novel polyamide nanofiltration membrane through Fe³⁺-tannic acid coordinated reverse interfacial polymerization for high-efficiency Mg²⁺/Li⁺ separation

Novel polyamide nanofiltration membrane through Fe³⁺-tannic acid coordinated reverse interfacial polymerization for high-efficiency Mg²⁺/Li⁺ separation

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