Nanocellulose is a promising material for water purification via biosorption because of its high surface area and surface groups capable of interaction with charged pollutants as metal ions, dyes, pesticides etc in water. The key challenge is however the tailoring of membrane porosity, water permeability and mechanical stability without compromising on the functionality and membrane efficiency<br/><br/>In the current work we demonstrate the potential and limitations of nanocellulose and graphene oxide hybrid membranes in water purification. The self-assembly of nanocellulose and graphene oxide into highly porous biohybrid materials has inspired the design and synthesis of multifunctional membranes for removing water pollutants. The AFM-based microscopy studies of (2,2,6,6-tetrame-thylpiperidine-1-oxylradical) (TEMPO)-mediated oxidized cellulose nanofibers (TOCNF), graphene oxide (GO) and their biohybrids provide strong, direct evidence of self-assembly between the two nano-enities that result in an amorphous and porous biohybrid network. Ultrathin biohydrid membranes (＜100nm) comprising of TOCNF embedded with 1 wt% GO nanosheets were successfully prepared via blade coating technique. The GO-TOCNF hybrid layer with a thickness of 68 nm on a microporous substrate exhibited stable water permeability (816 ±3.4 Lm-2h-1bar-1); higher than that of pure TOCNF or GO membranes. The membranes had a high retention efficiency (82%- 99%) for the dye molecules with hydration radius greater than 1 nm. The self-assembly and its surface properties of the membranes before and after the adsorption of Cu(II), is investigated by advanced microscopy techniques and is further clarified by the ReaxFF molecular dynamics (MD) simulations.<br/><br/>

Self assembled nanocellulose-graphene oxide hybrids for water purification: Possibilities and limitations

2019 Spring National Meeting

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.