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Fabricating Janus membranes via physicochemical selective chemical vapor deposition
Author(s) -
Mohammadi Ghaleni Mahdi,
Tavakoli Elham,
Bavarian Mona,
Nejati Siamak
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
aiche journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.958
H-Index - 167
eISSN - 1547-5905
pISSN - 0001-1541
DOI - 10.1002/aic.17019
Subject(s) - membrane , wetting , membrane distillation , janus , contact angle , chemical engineering , polymerization , chemical vapor deposition , materials science , deposition (geology) , polytetrafluoroethylene , porosity , polymer chemistry , chemistry , nanotechnology , polymer , composite material , paleontology , biochemistry , sediment , desalination , engineering , biology
Membranes with asymmetric wettability‐Janus membranes‐have recently received considerable attention for a variety of critical applications. Here, we report on a simple approach to introduce asymmetric wettability into hydrophilic porous domains. Our approach is based on the physicochemical‐selective deposition of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) on hydrophilic polymeric substrates. To achieve selective deposition of PTFE, we inhibit the polymerization reaction within the porous domain. We prefill the substrates with glycerol, containing a known amount of free radical inhibitor, and utilize initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD) for the polymerization of PTFE. We show that the glycerol/inhibitor mixture hinders the deposition of PTFE within the membrane pores. As a result, the surface of the substrates remains open and porous. The fabricated Janus membranes show stable wetting‐resistant properties, evaluated through sessile drop contact angle measurements and direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD).