Ultrafast molecular sieving through functionalized graphene membranes

Abstract

Graphene shows great promise for advanced filtration membranes with high permeance and enhanced rejection. Here we demonstrate filtration membranes with a nanochannel network for superior separation performance using 100–500 nm-wide graphene nanoplatelets (GnPs) that are efficiently prepared via a green method. The resulting membranes exhibit a well packed layer structure formed by GnPs and are highly stable in water and organic solvents and even in strongly acidic and alkaline media. Moreover, the GnP membranes possess high fluxes and good selectivity in both water and organic solvents based on the small size nanoplatelets and the stable nanochannels between the GnPs. The exfoliated GnPs and the subsequent membranes show great potential for practical applications in water purification and organic solvent filtration.