Multi-functional membrane selective layers by interfacial free radical polymerization

膜形成可渗透的屏障，允许选定的分子进入产品流，同时保留不需要的化合物。膜技术对许多物质的净化至关重要，包括水处理、生物制品生产以及食品和饮料加工。尽管应用如此多样化，商业膜目前仅由少数聚合物化学物质制成，这为开发可能提供更大选择性或更高通量的材料留下了机会，从而提高了净化的生产率。特别令人感兴趣的是水凝胶聚合物，与传统聚合物不同，它是亲水的，这开辟了新的应用，并可能通过减少膜污染来提高性能。该项目的目的是开发一种新的、可扩展的方法来形成薄的水凝胶膜，这种膜可以结合广泛的化学物质和功能纳米材料，从而提高水和生物材料的净化效率。本项目将开发一种通过自由基界面聚合在膜上形成非常薄、无缺陷的亲水性选择层的方法。水层和有机层之间的界面张力为聚合创造了一个均匀连续的界面。水溶性单体将被具有有限水溶解度的引发剂聚合，这将控制薄膜的厚度。一系列多功能材料将用于控制选择性。设计一个稳健的和可扩展的过程的原则将通过单体浓度，化学和聚合条件的变化来建立。嵌入的官能团将锚定集成的生物模板催化纳米颗粒，这将同时使污染物失活。所有得到的材料将被表征和测试选择性和催化失活。该项目将影响聚合物和膜科学、纳米生物技术和催化功能化材料。这种新材料将实现高效的水处理和环境净化。PI和副PI将指导研究生，将这项研究纳入他们的教学和核心实验课，并为公众设计新的推广活动和视频，以突出研究的关键方面。

1703549 AsatekinMembranes form a permeable barrier, allowing select molecules to pass into a product stream while retaining unwanted compounds. Membrane technology is crucial for purification of many substances, including water treatment, production of biological products, and food and beverage processing. Despite this diversity of applications, commercial membranes are currently made of only a handful of polymer chemistries, leaving an opportunity for development of materials that may provide greater selectivity or higher throughput, thereby increasing productivity of the purification. Of particular interest are hydrogel polymers, which unlike conventional polymers, are hydrophilic, and this opens up new applications and may increase performance by decreasing membrane fouling. The aim of this project is to develop a new, scalable method for forming thin hydrogel membranes that can incorporate a broad range of chemistries and functional nanomaterials, enabling greater productivity in purification of water and biomaterials.This project will develop an approach to form very thin, defect-free hydrophilic selective layers on membranes by free-radical interfacial polymerization. The interfacial tension between an aqueous and organic layer creates a uniform and continuous interface for polymerization. Water-soluble monomers will be polymerized by an initiator with limited aqueous solubility, which will control the thickness of the film. A range of multi-functional materials will be used to control selectivity. Design principles for a robust and scalable process will be established via variation of monomer concentration, chemistry, and polymerization conditions. Embedded functional groups will anchor integrated bio-templated catalytic nanoparticles, which will be for simultaneous deactivation of contaminants. All resulting materials will be characterized and tested for selectivity and catalytic deactivation. The project will impact polymer and membrane science, nanobiotechnology, and catalytically functionalized materials. The new materials will enable efficient water treatment and environmental cleanup. The PI and co-PI will mentor graduate students, incorporate this research in their teaching and into core lab classes, and design new outreach activities and videos for the general public that feature key aspects of the research.