It is well established that the membrane can acquire an electric potential in an initial phase of the ion transport when the cations and anions have different mobilities.  The acquired potential will play a central role in regulating ion transport so that electrical neutrality can be maintained in the solutions on both sides of the membrane.  In this paper, a new theoretical formulation was developed for accurate describe the transient acquiring process of membrane charge and potential on an initially neutral membrane.  Special effort was made in determination of the appropriate boundary conditions of the unsteady-state ion transport problem.  Simulation results showed clearly the charge acquiring process on an initially uncharged membrane due to the different mobility of cations and anions.  It was also demonstrated that the induced electric field across the membrane played a critical role in regulating ion fluxes across the membrane so as to maintain no-electric-current condition at steady state.  The theoretical formulation developed in this study would provide a solid basis for further investigation on ion transport through membranes.

Well imposed boundary conditions for modeling ion transport across membranes

246th National Meeting (2013)

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