Embodiments of the present disclosure describe thin-film composite membranes comprising a of the present disclosure further describe methods of preparing membranes, methods of manufacturing membranes, methods of separating chemical species, methods of using the membranes for organic solvent nanofiltration, pervaporation, and the like.

An improved method for concentrating dispersions of graphene oxide, coating a substrate with a layer of a graphene oxide solution, and producing a supported graphene membrane stabilised by controlled deoxygenation; and graphene-based membranes that demonstrate ultra-fast water transport, precise molecular sieving of gas and solvated molecules, and which show great promise as novel separation platforms.

Polymer hydrogels and methods for selective retrieval of microbial targets from microwells and other cell culture devices. The methods use semi-permeable, photodegradable hydrogel membranes that permit exchange of nutrients and waste products but seals motile bacteria and other microbes within microwells. Light exposure can be used to degrade the hydrogel membrane in a targeted manner and release the microbes from targeted microwells for further study.

A method of producing a DN gel membrane includes a step (1) including producing a 1st gel membrane by (i) casting, on a substrate, a solution containing an ionic liquid A and an ionic liquid B, the ionic liquid A being made up of 1st monomers each of which has a polymerizable functional group and (ii) polymerizing the 1st monomers; and a step (2) including producing the DN gel membrane by (i) immersing the 1st gel membrane in a solution containing 2nd monomers which are different from the 1st monomers and (ii) polymerizing the 2nd monomers. This method allows for continuous-type production which is suitable for industrial mass production of DN gel membranes or acid gas separation membranes.

A method for coating a porous support with a thin membrane selective layer via interfacial free-radical polymerization. The method is carried out by immersing a porous support in a monomer-containing solution, removing the porous support from the solution, covering the porous support with a second solution immiscible with the first solution, the second solution containing a polymerization initiator, activating the initiator to effect polymerization of the monomer, and washing the porous support having the membrane selective layer. Also disclosed are membranes prepared by the method and filtration methods using the membranes.

A system for producing an ion concentration gradient and a temperature-responsive electrolyte material which are utilizable, for example, for efficiently converting heat energy that has been discarded into reusable energy or for efficiently recovering an acid gas, such as carbon dioxide is provided. A temperature-responsive electrolyte is used to produce an ion concentration gradient by means of a temperature gradient. The temperature-responsive electrolyte is used in the state of an aqueous solution and also in the state of a solid phase.

An object of the present invention is to provide a porous membrane for membrane distillation excellent in thermal insulation properties. The porous membrane for membrane distillation of the present invention contains aerogel particles.

The invention discloses dual layer-coated membranes and methods for making and using these membranes. The dual layer-coated membranes have a relatively porous and substantial void-containing selective asymmetric membrane support, a first coating layer comprising a hydrogel, and a second coating layer comprising a hydrophobic fluoropolymer. The membrane support has low selectivity and high permeance. The dual layer coating improves the selectivity of the membrane support and maintains the membrane performance with time. The dual layer-coated membranes are suitable for a variety of liquid, gas, and vapor separations such as water purification, non-aqueous liquid separation such as deep desulfurization of gasoline and diesel fuels, ethanol/water separations, pervaporation dehydration of aqueous/organic mixtures, fuel gas conditioning, CO.sub.2/CH.sub.4, He/CH.sub.4, CO.sub.2/N.sub.2, H.sub.2/CH.sub.4, O.sub.2/N.sub.2, olefin/paraffin, iso/normal paraffins separations, and other light gas mixture separations. The dual layer-coated membranes are especially useful for natural gas liquid (NGL) recovery and CO.sub.2 removal from natural gas.

A method for manufacturing a self-healing hydrogel-filled separation membrane for water treatment includes soaking a porous support comprising pores in a monomer solution to fill the pores with the solution, removing the excessively filled monomer solution from the porous support, and forming a hydrogel in the pores by crosslinking the monomer. The separation membrane does not require an additional repair process when damage occurs to the separation membrane and can exhibit superior self-healing effect and physical stability.

A gas separation membrane, characterized by having a porous support and a polyamine layer formed on the porous support, the number-average molecular weight of the polyamine constituting a part of the polyamine being 100,000-500,000.