Interfacial electroneutrality controls transport of asymmetric salts through charge-patterned mosaic membranes.

ABSTRACT: Membranes that selectively enhance target solute permeation while rejecting competing species are essential for precision separations. This study introduces charge-patterned mosaic membranes (CMMs) that selectively transport divalent asymmetric salts by leveraging a net-neutral membrane-solution interface. This mechanism, dictated by the charge ratio of positive and negative domains on the membrane surface and the balance of cations and anions in the salt, is supported by analytical, numerical, and experimental results. Analytical solutions identified cationic domain coverages (f⁺) of 33%, 50%, and 66% as optimal for the selective transport of +2:-1 salts, +1:-1 salts, and +1:-2 salts, respectively, under conditions where the pattern size (L) is significantly large

SUBMITTER: Gao F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12415262 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature