I-Corps: Bio-inspired membranes

这个I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力侧重于水处理新技术。来自中央水处理设施或当地水井的自来水通常质量足够高，无需进一步处理即可饮用;然而，有些地理区域的水是永久或暂时不安全的。其他需求包括解决水的美学问题，这些问题没有达到不安全的水平，但消费者并不希望。要进入这个市场，产品需要有差异化和成本敏感性。在这个项目中，我们的团队将专注于评估竞争格局，确定商业化合作伙伴，并了解消费者在工业和家庭应用中的需求。这个I-Corps项目使用了一种新的方法来铸造生物启发的水处理膜。水通道蛋白是一种高选择性的水通道蛋白，由于其具有形成高通量水处理膜的潜力而受到世界范围内的关注。水通道蛋白的高水渗透性和选择性使得基于水通道蛋白的仿生膜在水净化方面具有吸引力。 在该项目中，与传统的聚合物膜过滤器相比，在跨孔仿生膜中专门设计了孔或通道，以最大限度地提高水传输效率。与传统膜相比，这些生物启发膜显示出更高的污染物截留效率和显著改善的反冲清洁效果。这有可能降低操作成本并增加膜的寿命。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project focuses on new technologies for water treatment. Tap water from a central water treatment facility or a local well is generally of high enough quality to drink without further treatment; however, there are geographic areas where the water is either permanently or temporarily unsafe. Other needs include addressing water aesthetics that are not at unsafe levels but are not desired by the consumer. To enter this market a product needs to be differentiated and cost sensitive. In this project the team we will focus on evaluating the competitive landscape, identifying commercialization partners, and understanding the consumer needs in industrial and household application.This I-Corps project uses a new method to cast bio-inspired water treatment membranes. Aquaporin, a highly selective water channel protein, has received worldwide attention because of its potential to form aquaporin-based membranes with high flux and rejection for water treatment. The high water permeability and selectivity of aquaporins makes aquaporin-based biomimetic membranes attractive for water purification. In this project pores or channels specifically engineered in a pore-spanning biomimetic membrane to maximize water transport efficiency, compared to conventional polymer membrane filters. These bio-inspired membranes display higher contaminant rejection efficiency and significantly improved backflush cleaning effectiveness as compared to traditional membranes. This has the potential to decrease operating costs and increase the life of the membrane.