Preparation of a new 2D MXene/PES composite membrane with excellent hydrophilicity and high flux

Abstract

MXene, a new 2D transition metal carbide-based material, possesses excellent permselectivity and hydrophilicity.

A flexible Ti3C2Tx (MXene)/paper membrane for efficient oil/water separation

“…The rapid water wetting phenomenon could be due to MXene's high affinity towards hydroxyl groups and the presence of interlaced porous nanoakes that promote water passage. 31 The underwater oil contact angle, OCA, for the composite membrane, as shown in Fig. 3(b) was approximately 137 when tested using a sunower oil droplet.…”

“…27 Titanium carbide (Ti 3 C 2 T x ), where T x denotes surface terminal groups (-OH, -O, and/or F), is the most widely studied member of the MXene family in water purication and environmental remediation applications due to its high surface area, hydrophilicity, surface functionality, abundance, facile scale-up synthesis, and environmentally benign characteristics. [28][29][30] MXenes have been also used extensively in water treatment applications, including water purication membranes, [31][32][33] heavy metal removal, 34,35 capacitive deionization, 36 and antimicrobial coatings. [37][38][39] In this study, a new concept is explored to produce membranes with a simple and low-cost process by coating 2D Ti 3 C 2 T x (MXene) on commercial print paper, to achieve efficient separation of emulsied oil/water mixtures.…”

Review of MXenes as new nanomaterials for energy storage/delivery and selected environmental applications

“…The enhanced water permeability is attributable to the nanochannels and large interspaces associated with the loosely lamellar structure of the MXene membrane. Also [41]. The pristine polyethersulfone ultrafiltration membrane (nominal molecular weight cut-off 10 kDa) did not effectively remove these inorganic salts (< 5% of the totals).…”

“…Membrane filtration affords several advantages (low-level/no chemical requirement, high removal efficiency, and a small carbon footprint), but trade-offs are apparent between membrane selectivity and permeability [182]. In recent years, many efforts have been made to overcome this limitation by developing membranes made of ultrathin 2D materials including graphene-based nanomaterials (e.g., graphenes, graphene oxides (GOs), and rGOs) [183,184], metal-organic frameworks [185][186][187], covalent organic nanosheets [188][189][190], and MXenes [40,41,191]. Compared to conventional materials, the 2D materials allow fabrication of ultrathin coating/separating layers enabling rapid passage of selected solutes, affording both excellent permeation and remarkable selectivity [46].…”

“…However, MXenes may be better in these contexts, because of their exceptional physicochemical properties (a large surface area, excellent stability, a high melting point, outstanding oxidation resistance, extraordinary electrical/thermal conductivity, and hydrophilicity) [10,39]. MXenes and MXene-based materials have been used as innovative adsorbents and as next-generation membranes removing environmental contaminants [40][41][42][43].…”