Electrosorption selectivity of ions from mixtures of electrolytes inside nanopores

Grand canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulations are employed to study the selective electrosorption of ions from a mixture of symmetric and asymmetric electrolytes confined in pores and results are compared to experimental observations obtained via cyclic voltammetry and batch electrosorption equilibrium experiments. GCMC simulations have the advantage over other Monte Carlo methods to unambiguously quantify the total number of ions in the pore solution. The exclusion parameter and selectivity factor are used to evaluate the selective capacity of pores toward different ionic species under various conditions. The number of coions inside the pore solution is determined by the proportion of different counterions present in the double-layer region. Because of the competitive effects resulting from asymmetries in charge and size associated with different ions, the electrosorption selectivity of small monovalent over large divalent counterions first decreases with increasing surface charge, passes through a minimum, and then increases with further increase in surface charge. At low and moderate surface charge densities, the fact that large divalent counterions preferentially screen the surface charge has a strong effect on pore occupancy; whereas at a very high surface charge density, size-exclusion effects dominate and determine the accessibility of different ions into the pores. Therefore, electrosorption selectivity of ions from a mixture of electrolytes could, in principle, be achieved via tuning the electrical double-layer formation inside the pores through the regulation of surface charge tailored for different ion characteristics. The findings of this work provide important information relevant to ion selectivity during separation processes and energy storage in supercapacitors.