Graphene oxide framework membranes intercalated by poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) for efficient desalination

doi:10.1016/j.cjche.2025.06.036

Abstract

Abstract: GO membranes with well-defined sub-nanometer channels are optimal for desalination and wastewater purification. However, the inherent instability of the interlayer structure and the severe trade-off between selectivity and permeability pose a significant challenge for GO membranes to be effectively applied to nanofiltration. Herein, we synthesized a series of PSSNa-GO-EDA/Al₂O₃ membranes by embedding poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (PSSNa) into ethylenediamine-crosslinked GO interlayers. The resultant membranes exhibited greater interlayer structures, in which new hydrophilic confined nanostructures were constructed. Effective nanofiltration performance was achieved through electrostatic-induced ion-confined partitioning. The PSSNa-GO-EDA-1/Al₂O₃ (PGE-1) membrane showed high rejection rates of 86.0% for Na₂SO₄ and 53.8% for NaCl while maintaining competitive pure water permeance of 10.85 L·m^-2·h^-1·bar^-1 (1 bar = 0.1 MPa), which is 12.1 times higher than that of the pristine GO membrane. More importantly, after immersion in pure water for 680 h, this membrane retained commendable separation performance. Overall, our work provides an effective strategy to finely fabricate confined nanostructures in lamellar GO-based nanofiltration membranes featuring excellent separation performance.

Key words: Graphene oxide membrane, PSSNa, Confined nanostructures, Desalination

摘要： GO membranes with well-defined sub-nanometer channels are optimal for desalination and wastewater purification. However, the inherent instability of the interlayer structure and the severe trade-off between selectivity and permeability pose a significant challenge for GO membranes to be effectively applied to nanofiltration. Herein, we synthesized a series of PSSNa-GO-EDA/Al₂O₃ membranes by embedding poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (PSSNa) into ethylenediamine-crosslinked GO interlayers. The resultant membranes exhibited greater interlayer structures, in which new hydrophilic confined nanostructures were constructed. Effective nanofiltration performance was achieved through electrostatic-induced ion-confined partitioning. The PSSNa-GO-EDA-1/Al₂O₃ (PGE-1) membrane showed high rejection rates of 86.0% for Na₂SO₄ and 53.8% for NaCl while maintaining competitive pure water permeance of 10.85 L·m^-2·h^-1·bar^-1 (1 bar = 0.1 MPa), which is 12.1 times higher than that of the pristine GO membrane. More importantly, after immersion in pure water for 680 h, this membrane retained commendable separation performance. Overall, our work provides an effective strategy to finely fabricate confined nanostructures in lamellar GO-based nanofiltration membranes featuring excellent separation performance.

关键词: Graphene oxide membrane, PSSNa, Confined nanostructures, Desalination

Hui Xu, Jincheng Huang, Hong Qi. Graphene oxide framework membranes intercalated by poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) for efficient desalination[J]. Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, 2025, 88(12): 176-187.

Hui Xu, Jincheng Huang, Hong Qi. Graphene oxide framework membranes intercalated by poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) for efficient desalination[J]. 中国化学工程学报, 2025, 88(12): 176-187.

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