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Ultrathin SiO2 Nanofibrous Membranes with Voronoi-like Nanonets for High-Flux Water Filtration and Elution-Free Microplastics Analysis
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Researchers designed a thin, porous glass fiber membrane with a natural, net-like structure to filter water. In lab tests, the membrane filtered water faster than existing inorganic membranes while using less pressure, and allowed microplastics trapped on its surface to be examined directly under microscopes without extra processing steps.
Abstract Inorganic microfiltration membranes are essential for water purification and microplastics detection; however, achieving high-flux water treatment and enabling straightforward microplastics analysis remain global challenges due to the limitations in the self-supporting nature and structural tunability of inorganic materials. Here, inspired by Voronoi-like natural structures, we report a route to create silicon dioxide (SiO2) nanofibrous membranes with a Voronoi-like nanonet structure (SiO2 VNMs), in which humidity-regulated phase separation and curing generate organosilicon-derived nanonets from silicone oil solution on electrospun and calcined SiO2 fibrous scaffolds. Subsequent calcination converts the organosilicon-derived nanonets into SiO2 nanonets. Benefiting from the self-organized Voronoi-like nanonet architecture, the resulting SiO2 VNMs simultaneously exhibit small pore sizes (≈150 nm), high porosity (≥80%), and an ultrathin thickness (≈1 μm). Consequently, the SiO2 VNMs deliver high filtration flux at low pressure (>6600 L m –2 h–1 at 15 kPa), and even under gravity-driven conditions (>900 L m–2 h–1 at 0.1 m H2O), exceeding that of existing inorganic membranes (6200 L m–2 h–1 at 70 kPa), rivaling the best state-of-the-art organic membranes. Moreover, the ultrathin inorganic structure enables direct on-membrane microscopic and spectroscopic identification of microplastics without elution. This work establishes a new pathway for designing inorganic filtration membranes that integrate efficient water purification with streamlined on-membrane microplastics detection.
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