title: Free-Standing Graphene Oxide-Palygorskite Nanohybrid Membrane for Oil/Water Separation.
abstract: Graphene oxide (GO) is an emerging kind of building block for advanced membranes with tunable passageway for water molecules. To synergistically manipulate the channel and surface structures/properties of GO-based membranes, the different building blocks are combined and the specific interfacial interactions are designed in this study. With vacuum-assisted filtration self-assembly, palygorskite nanorods are intercalated into adjacent GO nanosheets, and GO nanosheets are assembled into laminate structures through π-π stacking and cation cross-linking. The palygorskite nanorods in the free-standing GOP nanohybrid membranes take a 3-fold role, rendering enlarged mass transfer channels, elevating hydration capacity, and creating hierarchical nanostructures of membrane surfaces. Accordingly, the permeate fluxes from 267 L/(m(2) h) for GO membrane to 1867 L/(m(2) h) for GOP membrane. The hydration capacity and hierarchical nanostructures synergistically endow GOP membranes with underwater superoleophobic and low oil-adhesive water/membrane interfaces. Moreover, by rationally imparting chemical and physical joint defense mechanisms, the GOP membranes exhibit outstanding separation performance and antifouling properties for various oil-in-water emulsion systems (with different concentration, pH, or oil species). The high water permeability, high separation efficiency, as well as superior anti-oil-fouling properties of GOP membranes enlighten the great prospects of graphene-based nanostructured materials in water purification and wastewater treatment.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, China.|Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin) , Tianjin 300072, China.|Center for Membrane and Water Science & Technology, Ocean College, Zhejiang University of Technology , Hangzhou 310014, China.
authors.forename: Xueting
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, China.|Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin) , Tianjin 300072, China.
authors.forename: Yanlei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Su
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, China.|Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin) , Tianjin 300072, China.
authors.forename: Yanan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, China.|Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin) , Tianjin 300072, China.
authors.forename: Yafei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Technology of Ministry of Education, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, China.|Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin) , Tianjin 300072, China.
authors.forename: Zhongyi
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Jiang
keywords: free-standing nanohybrid membranes; graphene oxide nanosheets; intercalation; oil/water separation; palygorskite nanorods