Interplay of the forces governing steroid hormone micropollutant adsorption in vertically-aligned carbon nanotube membrane nanopores

Minh N. Nguyen, Melinda L. Jue, Steven F. Buchsbaum, Sei Jin Park, Florian Vollnhals, Silke Christiansen, Francesco Fornasiero and Andrea I. Schäfer ()
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Minh N. Nguyen: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
Melinda L. Jue: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)
Steven F. Buchsbaum: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)
Sei Jin Park: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)
Florian Vollnhals: Institute for Nanotechnology and Correlative Microscopy (INAM)
Silke Christiansen: Institute for Nanotechnology and Correlative Microscopy (INAM)
Francesco Fornasiero: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)
Andrea I. Schäfer: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-14

Abstract: Abstract Vertically-aligned carbon nanotube (VaCNT) membranes allow water to conduct rapidly at low pressures and open up the possibility for water purification and desalination, although the ultralow viscous stress in hydrophobic and low-tortuosity nanopores prevents surface interactions with contaminants. In this experimental investigation, steroid hormone micropollutant adsorption by VaCNT membranes is quantified and explained via the interplay of the hydrodynamic drag and friction forces acting on the hormone, and the adhesive and repulsive forces between the hormone and the inner carbon nanotube wall. It is concluded that a drag force above 2.2 × 10−3 pN overcomes the friction force resulting in insignificant adsorption, whereas lowering the drag force from 2.2 × 10−3 to 4.3 × 10−4 pN increases the adsorbed mass of hormones from zero to 0.4 ng cm−2. At a low drag force of 1.6 × 10−3 pN, the adsorbed mass of four hormones is correlated with the hormone−wall adhesive (van der Waals) force. These findings explain micropollutant adsorption in nanopores via the forces acting on the micropollutant along and perpendicular to the flow, which can be exploited for selectivity.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-44883-2

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