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Membranes
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Block Copolymer Membranes – Progress and Challenges
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Block Copolymer Membranes – Progress and Challenges

A special issue of Membranes (ISSN 2077-0375). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymeric Membranes".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2021) | Viewed by 12772

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Juliana Isabel Clodt

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Polymer Research, Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht, Max-Planck-Str.1, 21502 Geesthacht, Germany
Interests: membrane technology; ultrafiltration; block copolymer membranes; membrane performances; structure formation
Dr. Kirti Sankhala

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Polymer Research, Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht, Max-Planck-Str.1, 21502 Geesthacht, Germany
Interests: block copolymer self-assembly; isoporous membranes; hollow fiber membrane fabrication; isoporous hollow fiber membranes; membrane performance

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Block copolymers are capable of providing more than one advantageous property attributed to their selected repeating units, which make them an outstanding candidate for polymer-based membranes. Since the “Asymmetric Superstructure Formed in a Block Copolymer via Phase Separation” was published in 2007, a new field has moved into the focus of polymer and membrane scientists.

Extrapolating the block copolymers and their versatile self-assembly, various block copolymer membranes have gained growing importance with many promising applications, including micro-, ultra-, and nanofiltration, cell separation, controlled drug delivery, and optics and gas separations among others, in the last decade. In this Special Issue on “Block Copolymer Membranes—Progress and Challenges” of the open access journal Membranes, we would like to invite you to emphasize the broadness of the area of block copolymer membranes. Topics include but are not limited to,

  • Known as well as newly synthesized block copolymers applicable for membrane preparation;
  • Study of block copolymer solutions relevant to various membrane fabrications;
  • Flat sheet and hollow fiber membranes;
  • Nano- or microfibers for membrane applications;
  • Structure formation: simulations and experiments;
  • Additives or blending of block copolymers in the solutions;
  • Influence of external fields or mechanical forces;
  • Postmodification of block copolymers or prepared membranes;
  • Performance studies;
  • Stimuli responsive block copolymer membranes;
  • Applications and limitations.

We would like to invite authors to submit their original results as full paper or short communication. Reviews about the whole topic or special areas of the topic are also welcome.

Dr. Juliana Isabel Clodt
Dr. Kirti Sankhala
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Membranes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Block copolymer membranes
  • Isoporous membranes
  • Block copolymer solutions
  • Fabrication methods
  • Structure formation
  • Morphology
  • Additives
  • Performance
  • Stability
  • Water purification
  • Separations

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research, Review

2 pages, 155 KiB  
Editorial
Block Copolymer Membranes—Progress and Challenges
by Juliana Isabel Clodt
Membranes 2022, 12(4), 354; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes12040354 - 24 Mar 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1600
Abstract
Block copolymers are capable of providing more than one advantageous property due to their selected repeating units, which make them an outstanding candidate for polymer-based membranes [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Block Copolymer Membranes – Progress and Challenges)

Research

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16 pages, 11102 KiB  
Article
Spraying of Ultrathin Isoporous Block Copolymer Membranes—A Story about Challenges and Limitations
by Thomas Bucher, Juliana Isabel Clodt, Clarissa Abetz, Barbara Bajer and Volkan Filiz
Membranes 2020, 10(12), 404; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes10120404 - 7 Dec 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2613
Abstract
Isoporous membranes can be prepared by a combination of self-assembly of amphiphilic block copolymers and the non-solvent induced phase separation process. As the general doctor-blade technique suffers from high consumption of expensive block copolymer, other methods to reduce its concentration in the casting [...] Read more.
Isoporous membranes can be prepared by a combination of self-assembly of amphiphilic block copolymers and the non-solvent induced phase separation process. As the general doctor-blade technique suffers from high consumption of expensive block copolymer, other methods to reduce its concentration in the casting solution are sought after. Decreasing the block copolymer concentration during membrane casting and applying the block copolymer solution on a support membrane to obtain ultrathin isoporous membrane layers with e.g., spraying techniques, can be an answer. In this work we focused on the question if upscaling of thin block copolymer membranes produced by spraying techniques is feasible. To upscale the spray coating process, three different approaches were pursued, namely air-brush, 1-fluid nozzles and 2-fluid nozzles as generally used in the coating industry. The different spraying systems were implemented successfully in a membrane casting machine. Thinking about future development of isoporous block copolymer membranes in application it was significant that a continuous preparation process can be realised combining spraying of thin layers and immersion of the thin block copolymer layers in water to ensure phase-separation. The system was tested using a solution of polystyrene-block-poly(4-vinylpyridine) diblock copolymer. A detailed examination of the spray pattern and its homogeneity was carried out. The limitations of this method are discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Block Copolymer Membranes – Progress and Challenges)
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17 pages, 8949 KiB  
Article
Facilitated Structure Formation in Isoporous Block Copolymer Membranes upon Controlled Evaporation by Gas Flow
by Kirti Sankhala, Joachim Koll and Volker Abetz
Membranes 2020, 10(5), 83; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes10050083 - 28 Apr 2020
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3741
Abstract
The conventional fabrication of isoporous membranes via the evaporation-induced self-assembly of block copolymers in combination with non-solvent induced phase separation (SNIPS) is achieved under certain environmental conditions. In this study, we report a modification in the conventional fabrication process of (isoporous) flat sheet [...] Read more.
The conventional fabrication of isoporous membranes via the evaporation-induced self-assembly of block copolymers in combination with non-solvent induced phase separation (SNIPS) is achieved under certain environmental conditions. In this study, we report a modification in the conventional fabrication process of (isoporous) flat sheet membranes in which the self-assembly of block copolymers is achieved by providing controlled evaporation conditions using gas flow and the process is introduced as gSNIPS. This fabrication approach can not only trigger and control the microphase separation but also provides isoporous structure formation in a much broader range of solution concentrations and casting parameters, as compared to fabrication under ambient, uncontrolled conditions. We systematically investigated the structure formation of the fabrication of integral asymmetric isoporous membranes by gSNIPS. A quantitative correlation between the evaporation conditions (causing solvent evaporation and temperature drop) and the self-assembly of block copolymers beginning from the top layer up to a certain depth, orientation of pores in the top layer and the substructure morphology has been discussed empirically. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Block Copolymer Membranes – Progress and Challenges)
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Review

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23 pages, 13901 KiB  
Review
Block Copolymer Template-Directed Catalytic Systems: Recent Progress and Perspectives
by Labeesh Kumar, Sajan Singh, Andriy Horechyy, Andreas Fery and Bhanu Nandan
Membranes 2021, 11(5), 318; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes11050318 - 27 Apr 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3867
Abstract
Fabrication of block copolymer (BCP) template-assisted nano-catalysts has been a subject of immense interest in the field of catalysis and polymer chemistry for more than two decades now. Different methods, such as colloidal route, on-substrate methods, bulk self-assembly approaches, combined approaches, and many [...] Read more.
Fabrication of block copolymer (BCP) template-assisted nano-catalysts has been a subject of immense interest in the field of catalysis and polymer chemistry for more than two decades now. Different methods, such as colloidal route, on-substrate methods, bulk self-assembly approaches, combined approaches, and many others have been used to prepare such nano-catalysts. The present review focuses on the advances made in this direction using diblock, triblock, and other types of BCP self-assembled structures. It will be shown how interestingly, researchers have exploited the features of tunable periodicity, domain orientation, and degree of lateral orders of self-assembled BCPs by using fundamental approaches, as well as using different combinations of simple methods to fabricate efficient catalysts. These approaches allow for fabricating catalysts that are used for the growth of single- and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the substrate, size-dependent electrooxidation of the carbon mono oxide, cracking of 1,3,5-triisopropylbenzene (TIPB), methanol oxidation, formic acid oxidation, and for catalytic degradation of dyes and water pollutants, etc. The focus will also be on how efficient and ease-of-use catalysts can be fabricated using different BCP templates, and how these have contributed to the fabrication of different nano-catalysts, such as nanoparticle array catalysts, strawberry and Janus-like nanoparticles catalysts, mesoporous nanoparticles and film catalysts, gyroid-based bicontinuous catalysts, and hollow fiber membrane catalysts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Block Copolymer Membranes – Progress and Challenges)
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