Ultra-high oil-water separation membrane based on two-dimensional MXene(Ti3C2Tx) by co-incorporation of halloysite nanotubes and polydopamine

The oily wastewater is one of the major waste streams generated due to industrialization. The membrane technology has prominent advantages in the field of oily wastewater treatment. In present investigation, halloysite nanotubes (Hal) and polydopamine (PDA) were utilized to synergistically modify MXene followed by the fabrication of a series of Hal@MXene-PDA two-dimensional (2D) composite membranes by vacuum filtration. Observing the morphology of the membrane and exploring the change in interlayer space by scanning electron microscope (SEM), atomic force microscope (AFM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), it was confirmed that, the composite membrane was successfully modified. The results revealed that, the Hal@MXene-PDA composite membrane exhibits higher hydrophilicity compared to the virgin membrane. The pure water flux using the composite membrane was found to be 5036.2 L.m(-2).h-(1).bar(-1), and the rejections of petroleum ether and lubricating oil were evaluated as 99.8%. The modified membrane(M6) also shows good anti-fouling ability in the anti-fouling cycle test and hence can be considered as a potential candidate for oil-water separation.

Automated summary

The study successfully modified MXene by using Halloysite nanotubes and polydopamine to create a composite membrane with high hydrophilicity and effective oil-water separation properties. The composite membrane showed great potential for applications with its high pure water flux and excellent anti-fouling ability.