Design of graphene oxide/few layers graphene 2D heterostructured membranes (GO/FLG-m) for water purification
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Colloidal stable dispersions of two-dimensional (2D) materials have produced van der Waals (vdW) heterostructured membranes by vacuum filtration. Understanding the stacking and interaction between 2D materials is crucial for optimizing membrane performance in water purification and separation processes. We have characterized the interaction between graphene oxide (GO) and few layers graphene (FLG) in dispersions by UV–vis and Raman spectroscopies. The formation of vdW heterostructures by coupling between GO and FLG was visualized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The properties of membranes comprising different GO/FLG weight percentages (wt%25) were analyzed. Atomic force microscopy (AFM), contact angle (CA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were employed to investigate the surface properties of the GO/FLG membranes (GO/FLG-m). The extent of vdW heterostructure formation, as determined by the GO/FLG wt%25, was found to govern the mechanisms involved in water purification applications. GO/FLG-m (80GO-m) achieved 87 %25 removal efficiency of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). In the remotion of methylene blue (MB), GO-m reached a rejection of 94 %25 with a very low water permeation of 970 LMH/bar. In contrast, GO/FLG-m (70GO-m) achieved 79 %25 rejection, increasing water permeation to 2920 LMH/bar. GO/FLG-m (70GO-m) displayed excellent performance in ion rejection, 83.2 %25 with high mechanical stability. We have demonstrated that depending on the application, the wt%25 between GO/FLG modulates the pore size and the hydrophobic/hydrophilic interactions, optimizing the process. These results show the practical tuning of the physicochemical properties of GO/FLG-m for water purification systems through vdW heterostructures formation.
2D heterostructures; Few layers graphene; Graphene oxide; Membranes; Permeance; Water purification High resolution transmission electron microscopy; Membranes; Microfiltration; Nafion membranes; Permeation; Pore size; Wastewater treatment; Water filtration; Few-layer graphene; Graphene oxides; Permeance; Property; Two-dimensional; Two-dimensional heterostructure; Two-dimensional materials; Van der Waal; Water permeation; Water purification; Van der Waals forces