Robust Superhydrophobic Membrane for Membrane Distillation with Excellent Scaling Resistance.

We report in this study a scalable and controllable approach for fabricating robust and high-performance superhydrophobic membranes for membrane distillation (MD). This novel approach combines electro-co-spinning/spraying (ES2) with chemical vapor welding, and enables the formation of robust superhydrophobic (r-SH) membranes that are mechanically strong, highly porous, and robustly superhydrophobic. Compared with superhydrophobic membranes obtained using surface deposition of fluorinated nanoparticles, the r-SH membranes have more robust wetting properties and higher vapor permeability in MD. MD scaling experiments with NaCl and gypsum show that the r-SH membrane is highly effective in mitigating mineral scaling. Finally, we also discuss the mechanism of scaling resistance enabled by superhydrophobic membranes with a highlight on the roles of the surface-bound air layer in reducing the crystal-membrane contact area, nucleation propensity, and ion-membrane contact time.

[1]  E. Favvas,et al.  Enhancement of Flux Performance in PTFE Membranes for Direct Contact Membrane Distillation , 2020, Polymers.

[2]  L. Nghiem,et al.  Scaling mitigation in membrane distillation: From superhydrophobic to slippery , 2019, Desalination.

[3]  Yuping Li,et al.  Novel PTFE hollow fiber membrane fabricated by emulsion electrospinning and sintering for membrane distillation , 2019, Journal of Membrane Science.

[4]  Chunlei Su,et al.  Highly Effective Scaling Mitigation in Membrane Distillation Using a Superhydrophobic Membrane with Gas Purging , 2019, Environmental Science & Technology Letters.

[5]  Song Zhao,et al.  Mineral scaling in membrane desalination: Mechanisms, mitigation strategies, and feasibility of scaling-resistant membranes , 2019, Journal of Membrane Science.

[6]  B. .. Ooi,et al.  Superhydrophobic PVDF/TiO2-SiO2 Membrane with Hierarchical Roughness in Membrane Distillation for Water Recovery from Phenolic Rich Solution Containing Surfactant , 2019, Chinese Journal of Polymer Science.

[7]  T. He,et al.  Slippery for scaling resistance in membrane distillation: A novel porous micropillared superhydrophobic surface. , 2019, Water research.

[8]  Eui-Jong Lee,et al.  Reinforced superhydrophobic membrane coated with aerogel-assisted polymeric microspheres for membrane distillation , 2019, Journal of Membrane Science.

[9]  M. Elimelech,et al.  Engineered Slippery Surface to Mitigate Gypsum Scaling in Membrane Distillation for Treatment of Hypersaline Industrial Wastewaters. , 2018, Environmental science & technology.

[10]  Zhibo Ma,et al.  Hierarchically textured superhydrophobic polyvinylidene fluoride membrane fabricated via nanocasting for enhanced membrane distillation performance , 2018, Desalination.

[11]  James J. Steffes,et al.  3D printed polyamide membranes for desalination , 2018, Science.

[12]  M. Guiver,et al.  Stable Superhydrophobic Ceramic-Based Carbon Nanotube Composite Desalination Membranes. , 2018, Nano letters.

[13]  T. Matsuura,et al.  Wetting phenomena in membrane distillation: Mechanisms, reversal, and prevention. , 2018, Water research.

[14]  Anthony P. Straub,et al.  Membrane distillation at the water-energy nexus: limits, opportunities, and challenges , 2018 .

[15]  M. Jahanshahi,et al.  PVDF membrane assisted by modified hydrophobic ZnO nanoparticle for membrane distillation , 2018 .

[16]  Xiangcun Li,et al.  Enhanced performance of superhydrophobic polypropylene membrane with modified antifouling surface for high salinity water treatment , 2018, Separation and Purification Technology.

[17]  Chuyang Y. Tang,et al.  Interfacial Polymerization with Electrosprayed Microdroplets: Toward Controllable and Ultrathin Polyamide Membranes , 2018 .

[18]  T. He,et al.  Laminated PTFE membranes to enhance the performance in direct contact membrane distillation for high salinity solution , 2017 .

[19]  Yuping Li,et al.  Fabrication of a novel nanofibers-covered hollow fiber membrane via continuous electrospinning with non-rotational collectors , 2017 .

[20]  M. Elimelech,et al.  Post-fabrication modification of electrospun nanofiber mats with polymer coating for membrane distillation applications , 2017 .

[21]  W. Barthlott,et al.  Superhydrophobic Vertically Aligned Carbon Nanotubes for Biomimetic Air Retention under Water (Salvinia Effect) , 2017 .

[22]  J. Lienhard,et al.  Theoretical framework for predicting inorganic fouling in membrane distillation and experimental validation with calcium sulfate , 2017 .

[23]  Ze Xian Low,et al.  Perspective on 3D printing of separation membranes and comparison to related unconventional fabrication techniques , 2017 .

[24]  A. Jakóbik-Kolon,et al.  Prospects for high water recovery membrane desalination , 2017 .

[25]  Li-Zhi Zhang,et al.  Self-cleaning of Surfaces: the Role of Surface Wettability and Dust Types , 2016, Scientific Reports.

[26]  Chang‐Hwan Choi,et al.  Superhydrophobic drag reduction in laminar flows: a critical review , 2016 .

[27]  D. Hou,et al.  Tailoring surface charge and wetting property for robust oil-fouling mitigation in membrane distillation , 2016 .

[28]  Robin H. A. Ras,et al.  Moving superhydrophobic surfaces toward real-world applications , 2016, Science.

[29]  M. Elimelech,et al.  Engineering flat sheet microporous PVDF films for membrane distillation , 2015 .

[30]  Zhen-liang Xu,et al.  Superhydrophobic modification of PVDF–SiO2 electrospun nanofiber membranes for vacuum membrane distillation , 2015 .

[31]  Jianfeng Song,et al.  CF4 plasma modified highly interconnective porous polysulfone membranes for direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) , 2015 .

[32]  N. Patankar.  Thermodynamics of sustaining gases in the roughness of submerged superhydrophobic surfaces , 2015, 1505.06233.

[33]  T. He,et al.  Effective evaporation of CF4 plasma modified PVDF membranes in direct contact membrane distillation , 2015 .

[34]  Matthias Worgull,et al.  Bioinspired air-retaining nanofur for drag reduction. , 2015, ACS applied materials & interfaces.

[35]  Claire J. Carmalt,et al.  Robust self-cleaning surfaces that function when exposed to either air or oil , 2015, Science.

[36]  H. Shon,et al.  Fouling and its control in membrane distillation-A review , 2015 .

[37]  Farah Ejaz Ahmed,et al.  A review on electrospinning for membrane fabrication: Challenges and applications , 2015 .

[38]  Rong Wang,et al.  Electrospun superhydrophobic membranes with unique structures for membrane distillation. , 2014, ACS applied materials & interfaces.

[39]  Vicki Chen,et al.  Fouling and crystallisation behaviour of superhydrophobic nano-composite PVDF membranes in direct contact membrane distillation , 2014 .

[40]  Rong Wang,et al.  Fabrication of bioinspired composite nanofiber membranes with robust superhydrophobicity for direct contact membrane distillation. , 2014, Environmental science & technology.

[41]  Jack Gilron,et al.  CF4 plasma-modified superhydrophobic PVDF membranes for direct contact membrane distillation , 2014 .

[42]  Menachem Elimelech,et al.  Direct contact membrane distillation with heat recovery: Thermodynamic insights from module scale modeling , 2014 .

[43]  V. Chen,et al.  Effect of templating agents on the properties and membrane distillation performance of TiO2-coated PVDF membranes , 2014 .

[44]  Jing Zhang,et al.  Fabrication and characterization of superhydrophobic poly (vinylidene fluoride) membrane for direct contact membrane distillation , 2013 .

[45]  M. Prabhakaran,et al.  Advances in drug delivery via electrospun and electrosprayed nanomaterials , 2013, International journal of nanomedicine.

[46]  S. Yohe,et al.  A Mechanistic Study of Wetting Superhydrophobic Porous 3D Meshes , 2013, Advanced functional materials.

[47]  Rong Wang,et al.  Engineering superhydrophobic surface on poly(vinylidene fluoride) nanofiber membranes for direct contact membrane distillation , 2013 .

[48]  H. Christenson.  Two-step crystal nucleation via capillary condensation , 2013 .

[49]  Hassan A. Arafat,et al.  Fabrication and characterization of polyvinylidenefluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene (PVDF-HFP) electrospun membranes for direct contact membrane distillation , 2013 .

[50]  S. Yohe,et al.  3D superhydrophobic electrospun meshes as reinforcement materials for sustained local drug delivery against colorectal cancer cells. , 2012, Journal of controlled release : official journal of the Controlled Release Society.

[51]  Sanboh Lee,et al.  Superhydrophobic and superoleophilic properties of graphene-based sponges fabricated using a facile dip coating method , 2012 .

[52]  N. Hilal,et al.  Membrane distillation: A comprehensive review , 2012 .

[53]  Tzahi Y. Cath,et al.  A scaling mitigation approach during direct contact membrane distillation , 2011 .

[54]  Qingbiao Yang,et al.  Preparation of a durable superhydrophobic membrane by electrospinning poly (vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) mixed with epoxy-siloxane modified SiO2 nanoparticles: a possible route to superhydrophobic surfaces with low water sliding angle and high water contact angle. , 2011, Journal of colloid and interface science.

[55]  Wilhelm Barthlott,et al.  Dry under water: Comparative morphology and functional aspects of air‐retaining insect surfaces , 2011, Journal of morphology.

[56]  Haiping Fang,et al.  Direct three-dimensional imaging of the buried interfaces between water and superhydrophobic surfaces. , 2010, Angewandte Chemie.

[57]  Jun-Bo Yoon,et al.  A robust superhydrophobic and superoleophobic surface with inverse-trapezoidal microstructures on a large transparent flexible substrate , 2010 .

[58]  Michael I. Newton,et al.  Immersed superhydrophobic surfaces: Gas exchange, slip and drag reduction properties , 2010 .

[59]  K. Sirkar,et al.  Effects of antiscalants to mitigate membrane scaling by direct contact membrane distillation , 2009 .

[60]  Dietmar W Hutmacher,et al.  Combining electrospun scaffolds with electrosprayed hydrogels leads to three-dimensional cellularization of hybrid constructs. , 2008, Biomacromolecules.

[61]  K. Sirkar,et al.  Potential for scaling by sparingly soluble salts in crossflow DCMD , 2008 .

[62]  Gareth H. McKinley,et al.  Designing Superoleophobic Surfaces , 2007, Science.

[63]  Richard P Sear,et al.  Heterogeneous and homogeneous nucleation compared: rapid nucleation on microscopic impurities. , 2006, The journal of physical chemistry. B.

[64]  Chang-Hwan Choi,et al.  Large slip of aqueous liquid flow over a nanoengineered superhydrophobic surface. , 2006, Physical review letters.

[65]  Xiaoyan Yuan,et al.  Study on morphology of electrospun poly(vinyl alcohol) mats , 2005 .

[66]  Abbas Firoozabadi,et al.  Nucleation of gas hydrates , 2002 .

[67]  Xiang‐Yang Liu.  Heterogeneous nucleation or homogeneous nucleation , 2000 .

[68]  Darrell H. Reneker,et al.  Bending instability of electrically charged liquid jets of polymer solutions in electrospinning , 2000 .

[69]  Vicki Chen,et al.  Crystallization behavior of salts during membrane distillation with hydrophobic and superhydrophobic capillary membranes , 2015 .