Some results from 50 years' research on surface forces

A review is presented about research on surface forces and surface interactions conducted over the past half-century, with some emphasis on the pioneering contributions of the Department of Surface Phenomena at the Institute of Physical Chemistry of the USSR Academy of Sciences.     

Effect of solution chemistry on the surface charge of polymeric reverse osmosis and nanofiltration membranes

A streaming potential analyzer has been used to investigate the effect of solution chemistry on the surface charge of four commercial reverse osmosis and nanofiltration membranes. Zeta potentials of these membranes were analyzed for aqueous solutions of various chemical compositions over a pH range of 2 to 9. In the presence of an indifferent electrolyte (NaCl), the isoelectric points of these membranes range from 3.0 to 5.2. The curves of zeta potential versus solution pH for all membranes display a shape characteristic of amphoteric surfaces with acidic and basic functional groups. Results with salts containing divalent ions (CaCl₂, Na₂SO₄, and MgSO₄) indicate that divalent cations more readily adsorb to the membrane surface than divalent anions, especially in the higher pH range. Three sources of humic acid, Suwannee River humic acid, peat humic acid, and Aldrich humic acid, were used to investigate the effect of dissolved natural organic matter on membrane surface charge. Other solution chemistries involved in this investigation include an anionic surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate) and a cationic surfactant (dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide). Results show that humic substances and surfactants readily adsorb to the membrane surface and markedly influence the membrane surface charge.     

Synthesis and characterization of poly(amide sulfonamide)s (PASAs)

New diamino monomers IIa – IIg were synthesized in a two-step reaction sequence starting from p-acetamidobenzenesulfonyl chloride. Solution polymerization of these monomers in DMAC with terephthaloyl or isophthaloyl chloride resulted in the formation of a series of 14 poly(amide sulfonamide)s (PASAs) in excellent yield (> 95%). The polymers have in-trinsic viscosities of 0.32–1.11 dL g^?1. Except for polymers IIIa ? p and IIId - p , all other PASAs were readily soluble in aprotic polar solvents including DMAC, DMF, and DMSO. Thermogravimetric analyses of the polymers showed moderate thermal stability with 10% weight loss being recorded in the range of 325–408°C. In addition, these polymers exhibit moderate chemical stabilities toward alkali, acidic, and chromic acid solution. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

等离子体聚合及其聚合物的应用

本文着重综述了烃,含氮、氧的有机化合物,碳氟化合物以及有机硅化合物的等离子体聚合。同时还系统地介绍了等离子体聚合物在制备反渗透膜、分离膜、材料表面的涂层等方面的国内外的最新研究成果。     

羟丙基醋酸纤维素的合成及其膜的反渗透性

研究了羟丙基纤维素和羟丙基醋酸纤维素的合成。制备羟丙基纤维素的较佳反应温度为40℃左右和2小时或稍长,羟丙基含量随环氧丙烷浓度的增加而增加。在制备羟丙基醋酸纤维素时,随羟丙基含量的增加,所需醋化和水解的时间减少。以甘油-正丙醇或磷酸为添加剂,丙酮为溶剂经30～60s蒸发后制得了羟丙基醋酸纤维素反渗透膜。后者在20kg/cm~2下对氯化钠脱盐率可达95～98％,水通量1.0～2.1mL/cm~2·h,其使用温度上限比醋酸纤维素反渗透膜提高10℃以上。     

Mixed Polymer‐Coated Magnetic Nanoparticles as Forward Osmosis Draw Agents of Tuned Hydrophilicity

We recently reported a polymer‐coated magnetic nanoparticle (MNP) draw agent for the forward osmosis (FO) water desalination process. The water flux was found to increase when the polymer poly(sodium acrylate) (PSA) was anchored to the MNP surface as compared to the polymer (or polyelectrolyte solution) alone, due to the polymer chains being stretched out and most of the hydrophilic groups on the polymer contributing to water flux. We herein report the use of a secondary polymer poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) PNIPAM to manipulate the PSA polymer conformation and influence inter‐ and intrachain interactions to enhance the efficiency of the FO draw agent. These PSA–PNIPAM‐coated MNPs generated a much higher water flux of ～11.66 LMH when compared to the 100 % PSA‐coated MNPs featuring a value of ～5.32 LMH under identical FO conditions. The osmotic pressure and water flux driven by the mixed polymer‐coated MNPs were found to be a strong function of the net polymer coverage on MNPs, that is, net available hydrophilic groups. Our new draw agent demonstrates potential for use in the water industry due to its improved efficiency and cost effectiveness as it uses only ～0.062 % (w/v) of the draw agent solution.     

Influence of Substitutional Defects in ZIF-8 Membranes on Reverse Osmosis Desalination: A Molecular Dynamics Study

In this study, molecular dynamics simulation is used to investigate the effects of water-based substitutional defects in zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIF)-8 membranes on their reverse osmosis (RO) desalination performance. ZIF-8 unit cells containing up to three defect sites are used to construct the membranes. These substitutional defects can either be Zn defects or linker defects. The RO desalination performance of the membranes is assessed in terms of the water flux and ion rejection rate. The effects of defects on the interactions between the ZIF-8 membranes and NaCl are investigated and explained with respect to the radial distribution function (RDF) and ion density distribution. The results show that ion adsorption on the membranes occurs at either the nitrogen atoms or the defect sites. Complete NaCl rejection can be achieved by introducing defects to change the size of the pores. It has also been discovered that the presence of linker defects increases membrane hydrophilicity. Overall, molecular dynamics simulations have been used in this study to show that water-based substitutional defects in a ZIF-8 structure reduce the water flux and influence its hydrophilicity and ion adsorption performance, which is useful in predicting the type and number of defect sites per unit cell required for RO applications. Of the seven ZIF-8 structures tested, pristine ZIF-8 exhibits the best RO desalination performance.     

自支撑NH2-MIL-125/聚噁二唑复合正渗透膜的制备及性能

合成了高强度亲水性含羧基聚噁二唑材料(POD-COOH)和含氨基金属有机框架材料(NH₂-MIL-125), 以NH₂-MIL-125为填料, 与POD-COOH基体材料进行溶液共混, 并通过溶液浇铸法制备系列新型自支撑复合正渗透膜, 研究NH₂-MIL-125的引入对复合正渗透膜结构和性能的影响. 研究结果表明, 所制备的系列复合正渗透膜均呈致密结构, 且随着NH₂-MIL-125含量的增加, 复合膜的表面亲水性增加、 电负性增强, 并保持良好的机械性能. 以去离子水为进料液, 1.5 mol/L硫酸钠溶液为汲取液, 对上述自支撑复合膜进行正渗透性能测试, 发现由于消除了传统正渗透膜支撑层的内浓差极化现象, 该新型复合正渗透膜在分离过程中具有优异的正渗透性能.     

Associative thickeners. Part I: Synthesis,rheology and aggregation behavior

Nonionic associative thickeners with systematic changes in chemical composition have been synthesized. Rheological measurements of thickened latexes are presented as well as measurements of relaxation times, intrinsic viscosity and osmotic pressure of polymers in pure water solution. We find that the general hydrophobicity of the polymers' end groups control both rheology and efficiency. Hydrophobic parts in the interior of the polymer do not seem to effect rheology in latex systems. Viscosity increases with molecular weight in the low molecular region (Mw<10000), and passes through a maximum in the high molecular region. The thickeners seem to form micelle-like aggregates even at very low concentrations, while at higher concentrations the viscoelastic properties may be modeled by means of one Maxwell element. Only the network relaxation times but not the network structure seems to be dependent on the polymers' end group.