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Membranes
Special Issues
New Developments in Hybrid and Mixed Matrix Membranes
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New Developments in Hybrid and Mixed Matrix Membranes

A special issue of Membranes (ISSN 2077-0375).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2015)

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Darrell Alec Patterson

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath BA2 7AY, UK
Interests: hybrid and mixed matrix membranes; stimuli responsive membranes; organic solvent nanofiltration; membrane cascades for fractionation and purification; wastewater treatment; process intensification of catalytic reactors; membrane reactors
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Membranes synthesised solely from either polymer or ceramic materials sometimes cannot be made to achieve a desired separation, no matter how much the synthesis and fabrication methods are changed and optimised. This is because the selectivity and transport properties of a single class of material is not enough to produce an effective and economical separation for certain solutes and solvent combinations. By introducing one or more different types of materials into the membrane matrix—thereby producing what is known as a hybrid or mixed matrix membrane—this limitation can be overcome. Enhanced properties can also be imparted by the additional phases, which may include antifouling properties, increased electrical conductivity, enhanced mechanical stability, as well as the desired higher flux and enhanced selectivity. New and different processes are also possible using hybrid/mixed matrix membranes, such as membrane chromatography. Consequently, these multi-material membranes are becoming increasingly important in the membraneologist’s toolkit for achieving difficult and currently unachievable separations.

Moreover, there has been an explosion in the type, range, and application of hybrid and mixed matrix membranes in the last 10 years, in part driven by the exciting and diverse range of highly selective, stable and tuneable matrix materials, such as Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs), Porous Organic Frameworks (POFs) and other families of porous designer frameworks. Consequently this issue is a timely and much needed consolidation and collection of the latest developments in this growing and important research area in membranes.

This Special Issue of Membranes welcomes works related to the topic of hybrid and mixed matrix membranes. Both original contributions and reviews on recent advances in hybrid and mixed matrix membranes, materials and synthesis methods for making these membranes, and their applications in various fields are encouraged and greatly welcome.

Dr. Darrell Alec Patterson
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Membranes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • hybrid membranes
  • mixed matrix membranes
  • MOFs
  • membrane chromatography
  • anti-fouling
  • anti-aging
  • mixed mechanism separations.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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1881 KiB  
Article
Detailed Investigation of Separation Performance of a MMM for Removal of Higher Hydrocarbons under Varying Operating Conditions
by Heike Mushardt, Marcus Müller, Sergey Shishatskiy, Jan Wind and Torsten Brinkmann
Membranes 2016, 6(1), 16; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes6010016 - 25 Feb 2016
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 6339
Abstract
Mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs) are promising candidates to improve the competitiveness of membrane technology against energy-intensive conventional technologies. In this work, MMM composed of poly(octylmethylsiloxane) (POMS) and activated carbon (AC) were investigated with respect to separation of higher hydrocarbons (C3+) from permanent [...] Read more.
Mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs) are promising candidates to improve the competitiveness of membrane technology against energy-intensive conventional technologies. In this work, MMM composed of poly(octylmethylsiloxane) (POMS) and activated carbon (AC) were investigated with respect to separation of higher hydrocarbons (C3+) from permanent gas streams. Membranes were prepared as thin film composite membranes on a technical scale and characterized via scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and permeation measurements with binary mixtures of n-C4H10/CH4 under varying operating conditions (feed and permeate pressure, temperature, feed gas composition) to study the influence on separation performance. SEM showed good contact and absence of defects. Lower permeances but higher selectivities were found for MMM compared to pure POMS membrane. Best results were obtained at high average fugacity and activity of n-C4H10 with the highest selectivity estimated to be 36.4 at n-C4H10 permeance of 12 mN3/(m2·h·bar). Results were complemented by permeation of a multi-component mixture resembling a natural gas application, demonstrating the superior performance of MMM. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Developments in Hybrid and Mixed Matrix Membranes)
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2047 KiB  
Article
Proton Conductivity of Nafion/Ex-Situ Sulfonic Acid-Modified Stöber Silica Nanocomposite Membranes As a Function of Temperature, Silica Particles Size and Surface Modification
by Beatrice Muriithi and Douglas A. Loy
Membranes 2016, 6(1), 12; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes6010012 - 28 Jan 2016
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 8009
Abstract
The introduction of sulfonic acid modified silica in Nafion nanocomposite membranes is a good method of improving the Nafion performance at high temperature and low relative humidity. Sulfonic acid-modified silica is bifunctional, with silica phase expected to offer an improvement in membranes hydration [...] Read more.
The introduction of sulfonic acid modified silica in Nafion nanocomposite membranes is a good method of improving the Nafion performance at high temperature and low relative humidity. Sulfonic acid-modified silica is bifunctional, with silica phase expected to offer an improvement in membranes hydration while sulfonic groups enhance proton conductivity. However, as discussed in this paper, this may not always be the case. Proton conductivity enhancement of Nafion nanocomposite membranes is very dependent on silica particle size, sometimes depending on experimental conditions, and by surface modification. In this study, Sulfonated Preconcentrated Nafion Stober Silica composites (SPNSS) were prepared by modification of Stober silica particles with mercaptopropyltriethoxysilane, dispersing the particles into a preconcentrated solution of Nafion, then casting the membranes. The mercapto groups were oxidized to sulfonic acids by heating the membranes in 10 wt % hydrogen peroxide for 1 h. At 80 °C and 100% relative humidity, a 20%–30% enhancement of proton conductivity was only observed when sulfonic acid modified particle less than 50 nm in diameter were used. At 120 °C, and 100% humidity, proton conductivity increased by 22%–42% with sulfonated particles with small particles showing the greatest enhancement. At 120 °C and 50% humidity, the sulfonated particles are less efficient at keeping the membranes hydrated, and the composites underperform Nafion and silica-Nafion nanocomposite membranes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Developments in Hybrid and Mixed Matrix Membranes)
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Review

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8549 KiB  
Review
Hybrid and Mixed Matrix Membranes for Separations from Fermentations
by Christopher John Davey, David Leak and Darrell Alec Patterson
Membranes 2016, 6(1), 17; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes6010017 - 29 Feb 2016
Cited by 33 | Viewed by 11859
Abstract
Fermentations provide an alternative to fossil fuels for accessing a number of biofuel and chemical products from a variety of renewable and waste substrates. The recovery of these dilute fermentation products from the broth, however, can be incredibly energy intensive as a distillation [...] Read more.
Fermentations provide an alternative to fossil fuels for accessing a number of biofuel and chemical products from a variety of renewable and waste substrates. The recovery of these dilute fermentation products from the broth, however, can be incredibly energy intensive as a distillation process is generally involved and creates a barrier to commercialization. Membrane processes can provide a low energy aid/alternative for recovering these dilute fermentation products and reduce production costs. For these types of separations many current polymeric and inorganic membranes suffer from poor selectivity and high cost respectively. This paper reviews work in the production of novel mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs) for fermentative separations and those applicable to these separations. These membranes combine a trade-off of low-cost and processability of polymer membranes with the high selectivity of inorganic membranes. Work within the fields of nanofiltration, reverse osmosis and pervaporation has been discussed. The review shows that MMMs are currently providing some of the most high-performing membranes for these separations, with three areas for improvement identified: Further characterization and optimization of inorganic phase(s), Greater understanding of the compatibility between the polymer and inorganic phase(s), Improved methods for homogeneously dispersing the inorganic phase. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Developments in Hybrid and Mixed Matrix Membranes)
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