IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v16y2025i1d10.1038_s41467-025-60680-x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Smart and solvent-switchable graphene-based membrane for graded molecular sieving

Author

Listed:
  • Yuxin Li

    (Tsinghua University)

  • Jinping Zhao

    (Shandong University of Technology)

  • Jianduo Zhang

    (Dalian University of Technology
    Dalian University of Technology)

  • Xinyu Gong

    (Tsinghua University
    Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University)

  • Jin Zhou

    (Shandong University of Technology)

  • Ning Zhang

    (Dalian University of Technology
    Dalian University of Technology)

  • Yang Su

    (Tsinghua University
    Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University)

Abstract

Artificial stimulus-responsive membranes, particularly those responsive to different solvents, have important applications in complex and graded separation systems. Inspired by natural lipid membrane that alters mass transport behavior in response to interactions with various solvents, we report that incorporating porous graphene (PG) into graphene oxide (GO) membrane enables smart and switchable molecular sieving reversibly responsive to solvent types. The membrane shows high permeance for water and methanol, 45.52 and 13.56 L m−2 h−1 bar−1, respectively, and its molecular weight cut-off (MWCO) at ~319 g mol−1 in water, similar to pristine GO membrane, reversibly switches to 960 g mol−1 in methanol which is not observed in either pristine GO or graphene membrane. We accounted this switching to the change of transport pathways. In water, the GO-GO nanochannel is dominant, providing similar molecular sieving to pristine GO. In methanol, the GO-PG nanochannel becomes favorable because a strong solvent adsorption on the nanochannel surface, coupled with a weak solvent network under nanoconfinement, promotes a significant interlayer expansion, reducing the transport resistance and enabling larger, switched MWCO. This switchable sieving behavior is further demonstrated for efficient graded separation of ternary solution of solutes with various molecular weights.

Suggested Citation

  • Yuxin Li & Jinping Zhao & Jianduo Zhang & Xinyu Gong & Jin Zhou & Ning Zhang & Yang Su, 2025. "Smart and solvent-switchable graphene-based membrane for graded molecular sieving," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-9, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-60680-x
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-60680-x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-60680-x
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-025-60680-x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jacopo Frallicciardi & Josef Melcr & Pareskevi Siginou & Siewert J. Marrink & Bert Poolman, 2022. "Membrane thickness, lipid phase and sterol type are determining factors in the permeability of membranes to small solutes," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-12, December.
    2. Eduardo Perozo & D. Marien Cortes & Pornthep Sompornpisut & Anna Kloda & Boris Martinac, 2002. "Open channel structure of MscL and the gating mechanism of mechanosensitive channels," Nature, Nature, vol. 418(6901), pages 942-948, August.
    3. Junhyeok Kang & Yeongnam Ko & Jeong Pil Kim & Ju Yeon Kim & Jiwon Kim & Ohchan Kwon & Ki Chul Kim & Dae Woo Kim, 2023. "Microwave-assisted design of nanoporous graphene membrane for ultrafast and switchable organic solvent nanofiltration," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-13, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Matthias Pöhnl & Marius F. W. Trollmann & Rainer A. Böckmann, 2023. "Nonuniversal impact of cholesterol on membranes mobility, curvature sensing and elasticity," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-12, December.
    2. repec:plo:pcbi00:1002683 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Jonathan Mount & Grigory Maksaev & Brock T. Summers & James A. J. Fitzpatrick & Peng Yuan, 2022. "Structural basis for mechanotransduction in a potassium-dependent mechanosensitive ion channel," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-11, December.
    4. Tristan Ursell & Kerwyn Casey Huang & Eric Peterson & Rob Phillips, 2007. "Cooperative Gating and Spatial Organization of Membrane Proteins through Elastic Interactions," PLOS Computational Biology, Public Library of Science, vol. 3(5), pages 1-10, May.
    5. Arnab Chatterjee & Anupam Roy & Thejas Satheesh & Partho Pratim Das & Bapan Mondal & Prithiv Kishore & Mahipal Ganji & Somnath Dutta, 2025. "Structural insights into pre-pore intermediates of alpha-hemolysin in the lipidic environment," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-15, December.
    6. Ana García García & María Ferrer Aporta & Germán Vallejo Palma & Antonio Giráldez Trujillo & Raquel Castillo-González & David Calzón Lozano & Alberto Mora Perdiguero & Raúl Muñoz Velasco & Miguel Coli, 2025. "Targeting ELOVL6 to disrupt c-MYC driven lipid metabolism in pancreatic cancer enhances chemosensitivity," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-23, December.
    7. Kenjiro Yoshimura & Kazuko Iida & Hidetoshi Iida, 2021. "MCAs in Arabidopsis are Ca2+-permeable mechanosensitive channels inherently sensitive to membrane tension," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-9, December.
    8. Jin Li & William D. Jamieson & Pantelitsa Dimitriou & Wen Xu & Paul Rohde & Boris Martinac & Matthew Baker & Bruce W. Drinkwater & Oliver K. Castell & David A. Barrow, 2022. "Building programmable multicompartment artificial cells incorporating remotely activated protein channels using microfluidics and acoustic levitation," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-12, December.
    9. Anne M. Kiirikki & Hanne S. Antila & Lara S. Bort & Pavel Buslaev & Fernando Favela-Rosales & Tiago Mendes Ferreira & Patrick F. J. Fuchs & Rebeca Garcia-Fandino & Ivan Gushchin & Batuhan Kav & Norber, 2024. "Overlay databank unlocks data-driven analyses of biomolecules for all," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-15, December.
    10. Hai Liu & Xinxi Huang & Yang Wang & Baian Kuang & Wanbin Li, 2024. "Nanowire-assisted electrochemical perforation of graphene oxide nanosheets for molecular separation," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-11, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-60680-x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.