Nanocomposite membranes for organic solvent nanofiltration

Organic solvent nanofiltration (OSN) is a molecular separation method which offers a sustainable and reliable solution compared to the conventional energy-intensive separation processes. OSN can be successfully applied to several applications, such as food, pharmaceutical, petrochemical and fine-chemical industries. Current research on OSN membranes mainly focuses on polymeric materials due to the ease of processing, controlled formation of pores, lower fabrication costs and higher flexibility as compared with inorganic materials. However, there are some limitations for the polymeric membranes which can be partially surmounted by adding nanoscale fillers into the polymeric matrix to make nanocomposite membranes. This review aims to comprehensively evaluate and report the advances in nanocomposite membranes prepared by using either different nanoscale fillers or various fabrication methods for OSN applications. Nanoparticles that will be discussed include metal-organic framework, graphene oxide, carbon nanotubes, silica, titanium, gold, zeolite and other fillers. The incorporation of these nanoscale fillers into the polymeric membranes can positively influence the mechanical strength, chemical and thermal stability, hydrophilicity, solute selectivity and solvent permeance. This study may provide helpful insights to develop next-generation of OSN membranes for years to come.     

聚酰亚胺中溶剂成份的剖析

报道了用红外光谱法和GC/MS法对聚酰亚胺中所含溶剂成份的分析与鉴定。在红外光谱分析中，采用液膜法测定红外光谱图提供官能团的有关信息确定溶剂可能结构。由EI源质谱仪获得聚酰亚胺中所含溶剂成份的MS图和数据。并提出它的碎片裂解途径和特征离子，进行了辅助分析，确定了所含溶剂结构。     

The use of solvent resistant nanofiltration in the recycling of the Co-Jacobsen catalyst in the hydrolytic kinetic resolution (HKR) of epoxides

The use of solvent resistant nanofiltration (SRNF) provides an elegant alternative to the classical heterogenization of homogeneous catalysts. The SRNF-membrane separates the catalyst from the reaction mixture and allows products and solvent to permeate. This concept is now applied to the Co-Jacobsen catalyst in the hydrolytic kinetic resolution (HKR) of epoxides. A range of commercially available NF-membranes and three laboratory prepared membranes were subjected to filtration tests in diethylether, isopropanol and under solvent-free conditions. The membranes with the best performance were selected to recycle the Co-Jacobsen catalyst under catalytic conditions. Finally, the membrane reactor developed for the IPA-system, was optimized through the screening of different process parameters, including temperature, pressure and membrane thickness.     

Chloro complexes of cobalt(II) in aprotic solvents: stability and structural modifications due to solvent effect

Cobalt(II) chloro complexes were studied in aprotic solvents, namely, dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO), dimethylformamide (DMF), and propylene carbonate (PC). The measurements were performed spectrophotometrically in UV–visible–IR region at 25°C and at constant ionic strength: I = 1 mol L^?1 in DMSO and DMF, and 0.1 mol L^?1 in PC. Different models were tested and the model 1 Elleb, M, Meullemeestre, J, Schwing, MJ and Vierling, F. 1980. Inorg. Chem., 19: 2699[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar], 2 Elleb, M, Meullemeestre, J, Schwing, MJ and Vierling, F. 1982. Inorg. Chem., 21: 1477[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar], 3 Khan, MA, Meullemeestre, J, Schwing, MJ and Vierling, F. 1983. Polyhedron, 2: 459[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar], 4 Amuli, C, Meullemeestre, J, Schwing, MJ and Vierling, F. 1983. Inorg. Chem., 22: 3567[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar], i.e., that of four mononuclear successive complexes was retained. Stability constants of the identified complexes were determined and they increase inversely with the Gutmann's donor number of the solvents. Calculated electronic spectra are reported and the effect of solvents on the spectral properties are discussed. The symmetry of tetrachlorocobaltate is strictly T_d.     

Impact of TiO2 nanoparticles on morphology and performance of crosslinked polyimide organic solvent nanofiltration (OSN) membranes

Chemically crosslinked polyimide organic–inorganic composite nanofiltration membranes suitable for application in harsh organic solvents were successfully prepared by phase inversion of dope solutions. TiO₂ nanoparticles were dispersed in these dope solutions, comprising polyimide (PI) in N,N-dimethylformamide/1,4-dioxane. The impact of TiO₂ on the resulting PI membranes was investigated using SEM, TGA, water contact angle, dope viscosity measurements and mechanical strength. The presence of TiO₂ nanoparticles within the membrane matrix was proved by the detection of a peak characteristic of TiO₂ in the WAXS pattern. SEM pictures of the cross-section of the PI/TiO₂ membranes showed dramatically changed morphology compared to reference membranes with no TiO₂ addition. Macrovoids present in reference membranes were suppressed by increasing loading of TiO₂ nanoparticles, and eventually disappeared completely at a TiO₂ loading above 3 wt.%. Decreasing water contact angle and an increase in ethanol flux indicated that hydrophilicity increased as nanoparticle loading increased. The effect of TiO₂ on the functional performance of the membranes was evaluated by measuring flux and rejection using cross-flow filtration. Perhaps surprisingly, the presence of TiO₂ improved the compaction resistance of the membranes, whereas rejection and steady flux were almost unaltered.     

Polypyrrole modified solvent resistant nanofiltration membranes

New solvent resistant nanofiltration (SRNF) membranes with polypyrrole (PPy) modified toplayer were prepared on different types support by in situ pyrrole polymerization. The morphology of the membranes was studied by SEM. The PPy modified membranes were applied in the filtration of organic solvents. All the PPy modified membranes showed a very high retention of the negatively charged RB in different solvent systems, comparable to those of the MPF-50 and STARMEM 122 commercial membranes, but at much higher flux. The extended filtration experiment in strong aprotic DMF of PPy modified membranes showed a clearly stable permeability and retention over 30 h. In addition, the PPy modified membranes showed a much higher flux in THF systems than for earlier reported crosslinked poly(imide) membranes.     

High throughput study of phase inversion parameters for polyimide-based SRNF membranes

High throughput (HT) techniques were applied for the first time for a detailed study of parameters involved in a phase inversion process. The synthesis of integrally skinned asymmetric polyimide (Matrimid^®) membranes was investigated. In spite of being one of the most important materials of reference in solvent resistant nanofiltration (SRNF), a detailed study of the phase inversion parameters for this system is still missing. Phase inversion parameters were selected both on the level of the composition of the casting solution (polymer concentration, solvent type, co-solvent/solvent weight ratio, non-solvent content) as on the level of the post-casting (evaporation time) and immersion (composition coagulation medium) conditions. The study of this extensive parameter space was conducted in a HT-fashion, in which the entire membrane preparation and testing process was miniaturized, parallellized and automated. Thanks to the availability of reliable HT techniques at all levels (i.e. preparation of polymer solutions, membrane casting and membrane testing), 145 membranes were prepared and tested (in triplicate) in the separation of the dye rose Bengal from 2-propanol within a time frame of a few months, meaning a dramatic improvement in time- and cost-efficiency. An attempt was made to link the SRNF performances of the prepared membranes and their SEM-observed morphologies more fundamentally to the phase inversion parameters through the use of Hansen solubility parameters and viscosity measurements.     

Solvent effects on the polarographic behaviour of halobenzenes in aprotic media

The polarographic behaviour of fluoro, chloro, bromo and iodobenzene in dimethylformamide, dimethylsulfoxide and acetonitrile at 25 °C is reported. The viscosities and densities of these species in the three solvents have been measured and the corresponding viscosityB-coefficients and molar partial volumes at infinite dilution for halobenzenes are reported. The results, which show a clear dependence upon solvent nature, are analysed in terms of solute-solvent interactions and solvent structure.

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Lösungsmitteleffekte des polarographischen Verhaltens von Halogenbenzolen in aprotischen Medien

Zusammenfassung Es wird über das polarographische Verhalten von Fluor-, Chlor-, Brom- und Iodbenzol in Dimethylformamid, Dimethylsulfoxid und Acetonitril bei 25 °C berichtet. Viskositäten und Dichten wurden in diesen drei Lösungsmitteln gemessen und die entsprechenden Viskositäts-B-Koeffizienten und die molaren partiellen Volumina für unendliche Verdünnung der Halogenbenzole bestimmt. Die Ergebnisse, die eine starke Abhängigkeit vom Lösungsmittel zeigen, werden mittels der Wechselwirkung Lösungsmittel —gelöster Stoff und Lösungsmittelstruktur interpretiert.

     

Effect of the solvent on the equilibria of acid-base indicators in aprotic and amphiprotic solvents

The dissociation constants of a series of indicators inN,N-dimethylformamide medium have been determined, and compared with those for the indicators in other aprotic solvents (dimethylsulphoxide and acetonitrile) and in some amphiprotic solvents (water, methanol, ethanol, propan-2-ol and tertbutanol). The effect of the solvent characteristics on the pK values have been evaluated, and the pK + p _ws ^t (H⁺) values shown to be linearly correlated with the Dimroth and ReichardtE _T ^N and acceptor number solvatochromic parameters.     

Solute molecular transport through polyimide asymmetric organic solvent nanofiltration (OSN) membranes and the effect of membrane-formation parameters on mass transfer

This work studies the effect of two membrane-formation parameters, evaporation time and casting thickness, on the diffusive mass transport of organic solutes through an organic solvent nanofiltration (OSN) membrane. These parameters showed a coupled effect on the final membrane thickness, which was explained in terms of top-layer formation. In a concentration-driven dialysis, both parameters, as well as the resulting membrane thickness, had a significant effect on mass transport. Casting thickness had the greatest effect on membrane mass transport rates. Multivariate regression was used to model the dialysis process with acceptable fit. A representation of the membrane morphology was obtained from SEM pictures and used to formulate an alternative mechanistic mass-transport model. A resistance-circuit analogy was used to describe transport through the top and microporous layers, which also considered diffusion through the pores and the polymer for each layer. From the analyses of the models and considering that no differences in top-layer thickness were observed by SEM, it is concluded that membrane asymmetry, determined by the formation parameters, controls mass transport, rather than top-layer thickness.     

High throughput screening for rapid development of membranes and membrane processes

The objective of this study was to investigate the feasibility of high throughput (HT) screening techniques for pressure-driven membrane processes. For this purpose, a HT-filtration module, allowing to perform 16 pressure-driven separations simultaneously, was designed. The potential of the developed equipment and of the HT-screening concept in general was validated by demonstrating both the reproducibility of experimental flux and selectivity data, and the scalability of these data between the HT-module and a conventional dead-end filtration set-up. Data were obtained with two solvent resistant nanofiltration (SRNF) membranes: a laboratory-prepared polyimide (PI) and a commercial MPF-50 membrane. The reproducibility of the data was highly encouraging, proving that this HT-approach can be a useful tool to rapidly screen a large array of operational parameters in membrane processes and of synthesis parameters in the development of new membranes.     

Proton solvation in protic and aprotic solvents

Protonation pattern strongly affects the properties of molecular systems. To determine protonation equilibria, proton solvation free energy, which is a central quantity in solution chemistry, needs to be known. In this study, proton affinities (PAs), electrostatic energies of solvation, and pK_A values were computed in protic and aprotic solvents. The proton solvation energy in acetonitrile (MeCN), methanol (MeOH), water, and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) was determined from computed and measured pK_A values for a specially selected set of organic compounds. pK_A values were computed with high accuracy using a combination of quantum chemical and electrostatic approaches. Quantum chemical density functional theory computations were performed evaluating PA in the gas‐phase. The electrostatic contributions of solvation were computed solving the Poisson equation. The computations yield proton solvation free energies with high accuracy, which are in MeCN, MeOH, water, and DMSO ?255.1, ?265.9, ?266.3, and ?266.4 kcal/mol, respectively, where the value for water is close to the consensus value of ?265.9 kcal/mol. The pK_A values of MeCN, MeOH, and DMSO in water correlates well with the corresponding proton solvation energies in these liquids, indicating that the solvated proton was attached to a single solvent molecule. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Effect of membrane pretreatment on performance of solvent resistant nanofiltration membranes in methanol solutions

This paper reports the effect of membrane pretreatment using different organic solvents on the performance of polyamide, polyimide and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membranes in methanol solutions. Membrane pretreatment using acetone, methanol and toluene results in significant changes of membrane flux and rejection for polyamide- and polyimide-based membranes (Desal-DK and STARMEM 228) due to membrane swelling. The Performance of a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based membrane (MPF-50) in methanol solutions was not significantly affected by membrane pretreatment.     

The solubility and solvation of salts in mixed nonaqueous solvents. 1. Potassium halides in mixed aprotic solvents

The solubilities of potassium fluoride, chloride, and bromide in acetonitrile, N,N-dimethylformamide, and dimethylsulfoxide and in binary mixtures of these solvents were determined at 25°C. The standard molar Gibbs free energies of solution, _solnG°, in the neat solvents were related to the polarizabilities and basicities of the anions and the dipole moments and acidities of the solvents. The values of _solnG° in the mixtures were fitted by expressions from the quasi-lattice quasi-chemical theory. The mean number of each kind of solvent in the nearest environment of the ions was obtained from these results.     

Rationalization of the conflicting effects of hydrogen bond donor solvent on nucleophilic aromatic substitution reactions in non-polar aprotic solvent: reactions of phenyl 2,4,6-trinitrophenyl ether with primary and secondary amines in benzene-methanol mixtures

The kinetics of the reactions of phenyl 2,4,6-trinitrophenyl ether with piperidine and cyclohexylamine respectively were studied at different amine concentrations in benzene. The reaction of cyclohexylamine was not base-catalysed while that of piperidine was catalysed by one molecule of the nucleophilic amine. Addition of small amounts of hydrogen-bond donor solvent, methanol to the benzene medium of the reactions produced different effects—rate diminution followed by rate increase in one and continuous rate diminution in the other. These effects are compared with that of aniline (previously studied) in which a continuous rate increase was observed. The results are rationalized in terms of the effect of amine-solvent interaction on the nucleophilicity of the amines in addition to some other factors operating through cyclic transition states leading to products. It is evident from the rationalization that the idea of ‘dimer nucleophile’ in nucleophilic aromatic substitution reactions is erroneous.     

Crosslinked integrally skinned asymmetric polyaniline membranes for use in organic solvents

Solvent stable integrally skinned asymmetric nanofiltration membranes were prepared from polyaniline. These membranes were made by phase inversion and then crosslinked using two different chemical crosslinkers, α,α′-dichloro-p-xylene and glutaraldehyde. The resultant membranes were found to be stable in various organic solvents including acetone, methanol, ethyl acetate, tetrahydrofuran and N,N-dimethyl formamide. Nanofiltration experiments carried out in acetone and dimethyl formamide showed that the membranes gave stable permeate fluxes and good separation performances in the nanofiltration range. Molecular weight cut-off (MWCO) of the membranes was found to be between 150 and 250 g mol⁻¹. These membranes were also found to be stable for operations at elevated temperatures up to 70 °C and possibly higher. Furthermore, no fillers or preservative agents are required to maintain the membranes in a dry state thereby increasing the ease of handling.     

Homogeneous polyimide/cyclodextrin composite membranes for pervaporation dehydration of isopropanol

Composite membranes with a sub-nanoscale homogeneous distribution of CD toroids in the Matrimid matrix were developed for dehydration of aqueous isopropanol. The composite membranes demonstrated separation factor far surpassing that of the neat Matrimid dense membrane. The heart of this innovation is the utilization of a CD derivative, ethylenediamine-β-cyclodextrin (EDA-β-CD), where the amine of CD could react with the imide of Matrimid and efficiently immobilize the CD rings during membrane formation. The superior separation properties for membranes embedded with 2–5% EDA-β-CD were attributed to the additional water channels created by the hydrophilic outer surface of CD and its interactions with the polymer matrix. FT-IR, density measurements and XRD have confirmed these hypotheses. Nevertheless, the separation factor exhibited an increasing then decreasing trend as a function of CD content and the opposite trend was observed with permeation flux. Investigation on the effect of feed water concentration showed that the neat Matrimid membrane possessed almost constant performance, but the Matrimid/EDA-β-CD (0.05) composite membrane exhibited an obvious increase in permeability and a decrease in selectivity at high water content. Even though the composite membrane swelled more at higher water content due to the intensified hydrophilicity ascribed to the introduction of CD structure, it always had much better separation factor. In addition, the Matrimid mixed matrix membranes embedded with 2–5% EDA-β-CD held reasonably tensile strength and modulus. The newly developed mixed matrix membrane approach may open up a new way to prepare next-generation high-performance asymmetric pervaporation membranes for isopropanol separation.     

Simple methods for the estimation of ionization constants of substituted pyridine N-oxides in polar aprotic solvents and water

A direct method for the determination of the pK _a values of acids conjugated to substituted pyridine N-oxides has been proposed which is based on the pH measurement of the solution of the basic salt. It has been experimentally shown that the method is reliable when applied to N-oxides of not too low basicity (pK _a >5). Correlation has been performed between the pK _a values in aqueous and aprotic media solutions which shows the great influence of the solvation effect on the acid-base equilibria. The good correlation between the pK _a values in aqueous and non-aqueous solutions enables the pK _a values in water to be estimated with sufficient accuracy, even in the cases when the experimental limitations make the determination impossible which is shown on the basis of selected examples.     

Solvent-induced swelling of membranes — Measurements and influence in nanofiltration

This paper describes improvements to an apparatus for in-situ determinations of swelling where a linear inductive probe and electronic column gauge with an overall resolution of 0.1 μm was used for measurements of seven variants of polyacrylonitrile (PAN)/polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) composite nanofiltration membranes in a range of alkane, aromatic and alcohol solvents. The unswollen membranes incorporated PDMS layers between 1 and 10 μm nominal thickness and were manufactured with a radiation and/or thermal crosslinking step.

The tested membranes exhibited a range of swelling dependent on the degree of crosslinking, the initial PDMS layer thickness and the type of solvent. With no applied pressure the PDMS layer on some radiation cross-linked membranes swelled as much as 170% of the initial thickness whilst other membranes were restricted to a maximum swelling of 80%. When a pressure up to 2000 kPa was applied to a membrane then swelling could be reduced to 20% of the value obtained at zero applied pressure. By vertically stacking up to three membrane samples it was possible to determine the swelling of PDMS layers as thin as 1 μm, although higher imposed pressures rendered some results unreliable as the measurement resolution of the apparatus was approached. The results of the swelling experiments are contrasted with crossflow nanofiltration performance in terms of solvent flux and solute rejection.