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Photo-switchable ultra-thin membranes for molecular separation

Project description

Solutions enhancing membrane separation performance

Membrane separation is crucial for gas separation, water purification and energy storage, and integral to supporting key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. However, current membranes present challenges related to permeability, selectivity and fouling, highlighting the need for innovative solutions to improve their performance and lifespan. With support from the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the PhotoBrane project will train a new generation of experts in advanced membrane technology, enabling them to enhance both separation performance and longevity. The research will focus on modern membrane materials, using photochemical methods to develop photo-switching mechanisms that improve wettability and prevent fouling. Additionally, it will explore how photo-tuning the structure, porosity and polarity of dye-loaded membranes affects their performance in both gaseous and liquid environments.

Objective

"The separation of molecules and ions by membranes is essential for the separation of gases, purification of water, energy conversion
and storage, and many other applications, and is therefore of crucial technological importance for achieving the sustainable development goals ""clean water and sanitation"", ""affordable and clean energy"", and ""climate action"" defined by the UN. The membranes established to date suffer either from a poor compromise between permeability and selectivity or from fouling. Innovative concepts to extend the lifetime of membranes and to improve their separation performance are urgently needed to achieve the aforementioned goals as quickly as possible.
PhotoBrane will train a new generation of leading experts in a completely new approach to membrane technology to take separation performance and longevity to a new level. Our research will be built on the most modern membrane materials, investigated by PhotoBrane’s PIs. In our new research approach, we are exploring how to use photochemistry methods to develop photo-switching regimes of the membrane’s wettability to prevent their fouling. To achieve unprecedented separation performance, we take the photo-switching a step further and investigate the influence of photo-tuning the structure, porosity, and polarity of dye-loaded membranes on their function in gaseous and liquid media. Through this research, the doctoral researchers receive interdisciplinary training and, through secondments to industrial partners, gain insights into various topics of photo- and material chemistry as well as membrane technology. The excellent research is carried out at renowned European centers of membrane research and photochemistry. The mobility within the network, combined with excellent research and training, creates a highly synergistic framework for success. This ensures an efficient transfer of excellent academic results to industry through a new generation of entrepreneurial and highly skilled scientists."

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/euroscivoc.

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Coordinator

LEIBNIZ-INSTITUT FUER PHOTONISCHE TECHNOLOGIEN E.V.
Net EU contribution
€ 521 078,40
Address
Albert Einstein strasse 9
07745 Jena
Germany

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Region
Thüringen Thüringen Jena, Kreisfreie Stadt
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost
No data

Participants (8)

Partners (8)

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