Facile MXene-templated thin film composite membranes for enhanced nanofiltration performance

The eco-friendly and efficient nanofiltration (NF) membrane plays a critical role in the water purification industry; however, improving permeance while maintaining rejection remains a tremendous challenge. This study presents a novel approach for regulating interfacial polymerization (IP) by intercalating sodium alginate (SA) into MXene nanosheets . This method facilitates the fabrication of nanofiltration membranes that effectively overcome the “trade-off” effect. In addition to increasing the penetration area by enlarging the interlayer spacing between MXene nanosheets , the use of SA also reduces the susceptibility to swelling caused by weak interactions among adjacent stacked nanosheets . The presence of the intermediate layer effectively regulates the diffusion of piperazine and promotes the formation of a complete polyamide (PA) layer with ridge-valley structures, while simultaneously enhancing permeability. The permeability of the prepared nanofiltration membrane reaches 32.4 L m -2 h −1 bar −1 while retaining a rejection efficiency of 96.3 % for divalent ions. This research paves the way for the development of a new generation of high-flux nanofiltration membranes used in desalination and water purification.