1
|
Sahu P, Ali SM. Uniqueness of Nanoscale Confinement for Fast Water Transport: Effect of Nanotube Diameter and Hydrophobicity. J Phys Chem B 2024; 128:222-243. [PMID: 38149848 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.3c05979] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2023]
Abstract
Inspired by the enhanced water permeability of carbon nanotubes (CNTs), molecular dynamics simulations were performed to investigate the transport behavior through nanotubes made of boron nitride (BNNT), silicon carbide (SiC), and silicon nitride (SiN) alongside carbon nanotubes (which have different hydrophobic attributes) considering their implication for reverse osmosis (RO) membranes under different practical environments. According to our findings, not only do CNTs but also other kinds of nanotubes exhibit transition anomalies with increasing diameter. Utilizing the robust two-phase thermodynamic (2PT) methods, the current examinations shed light on thermodynamic origin of favorable water filling of these nanotubes. The results show that regardless of the nanotube material, the filling of water inside small nanopores (d < 10 Å) as well as within pores of diameter larger than 15 Å will always be favored by the entropy of filling. However, the entropic preference for filling nanotubes with a diameter of 10-15 Å depends on the constituent material. In particular, the enhancement in total entropy of confined water was mainly due to the increased rotational freedom of confined water molecules. The thermodynamic origin of water transport was correlated with the structural and fluidic behavior of water inside these nanotubes. The observed data for density, flow, structure correlation functions, water-water coordination, tetrahedral order parameter, hydrogen bonds, and density of states functions quantitatively support the observed entropy behavior. Of critical importance is that the present study demonstrates the effectiveness of RO filtration using nanotubes of boron nitride rather than carbon. Furthermore, it was found that one should avoid the use of silicon nanotubes unless filtration needs to be performed under harsh environments where nanotube of other materials cannot survive. Specifically, the results show that both the structural and dynamic properties of water confined in BNNTs are similar to those of CNT's, and for SiNT it is similar as SiC. Our results show that besides the nanotube material, the chirality index of the nanotube also plays a significant role in determining the structure, dynamics and thermodynamics of confined water molecules.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Pooja Sahu
- Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085, India
- Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai 400094, India
| | - Sk Musharaf Ali
- Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085, India
- Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai 400094, India
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Dos Santos Cavaleiro RM, da Silva Arouche T, Martins Tanoue PS, Sá Pereira TS, de Carvalho Junior RN, Paranhos Costa FL, de Andrade Filho TS, Dos Santos Borges R, de Jesus Chaves Neto AM. Hormones Nanofiltration in Carbon Nanotubes and Boron Nitride Nanotubes Using Uniform External Electric Field Through Molecular Dynamics. JOURNAL OF NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY 2021; 21:5499-5509. [PMID: 33980360 DOI: 10.1166/jnn.2021.19467] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Hormones are a dangerous group of molecules that can cause harm to humans. This study based on classical molecular dynamics proposes the nanofiltration of wastewater contaminated by hormones from a computer simulation study, in which the water and the hormone were filtered in two single-walled nanotube compositions. The calculations were carried out by changing the intensities of the electric field that acted as a force exerting pressure on the filtration along the nanotube, in the simulation time of 100 ps. The hormones studied were estrone, estradiol, estriol, progesterone, ethinylestradiol, diethylbestrol, and levonorgestrel in carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and boron nitride (BNNTs). The most efficient nanofiltrations were for fields with low intensities in the order of 10-8 au and 10-7 au. The studied nanotubes can be used in membranes for nanofiltration in water treatment plants due to the evanescent field potential caused by the action of the electric field inside. Our data showed that the action of EF in conjunction with the van der Walls forces of the nanotubes is sufficient to generate the attractive potential. Evaluating the transport of water molecules in CNTs and BNNTs, under the influence of the electric field, a sequence of simulations with the same boundary conditions was carried out, seeking to know the percentage of water molecules filtered in the nanotubes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Tiago da Silva Arouche
- Laboratory for Preparation and Computing of Nanomaterials (LPCN), Federal University of Pará, 66075-110, Belém, PA, Brazil
| | - Phelipe Seiichi Martins Tanoue
- Laboratory for Preparation and Computing of Nanomaterials (LPCN), Federal University of Pará, 66075-110, Belém, PA, Brazil
| | - Tais Souza Sá Pereira
- Laboratory for Preparation and Computing of Nanomaterials (LPCN), Federal University of Pará, 66075-110, Belém, PA, Brazil
| | | | - Fabio Luiz Paranhos Costa
- Federal University of Goiás, Campus Jataí. Rodovia BR-364, Setor Francisco Antônio, 75801615 - Jataí, GO - Brazil
| | - Tarciso Silva de Andrade Filho
- Federal University of the South and Southeast of Pará, Campus de Marabá. FL 17, QD 04, LT Especial Nova Marabá 68505080 - Maraba, PA - Brazil
| | - Rosivaldo Dos Santos Borges
- Federal University of Pará, Department of Pharmacy. Rua Augusto Correa, SN Pharmaceutical Chemistry Laboratory Guarna 66075-110 - Belem, PA - Brazil
| | | |
Collapse
|
3
|
Water diffusion in carbon nanotubes under directional electric frields: Coupling between mobility and hydrogen bonding. Chem Phys 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chemphys.2020.110849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
|
4
|
Druchok M, Lukšič M. Carboxylated carbon nanotubes can serve as pathways for molecules in sandwich-like two-phase organic-water systems. J Mol Liq 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.molliq.2019.111287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
|
5
|
Das A, Ali SM. Molecular Dynamics Simulation Studies on Structure, Dynamics, and Thermodynamics of Uranyl Nitrate Solution at Various Acid Concentrations. J Phys Chem B 2019; 123:4571-4586. [PMID: 31070371 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.9b01498] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The structural and dynamical characteristics of uranyl ions in an aqueous acidic environment are of immense importance in the field of nuclear fuel reprocessing. In view of that, the structural and dynamical behavior of the uranyl ion in water has been investigated by performing molecular dynamics (MD) simulations using different force fields. All the force fields have depicted similar structural and dynamical properties except the free energy of hydration where the Guilbaud-Wipff (GW) model performs well over the others. The calculated density using MD simulations is found to be in excellent agreement with the measured experimental density, which ensures the accuracy of the adopted GW force field. The calculated surface tension and shear viscosity are seen to be increased with uranyl nitrate concentrations. At a higher concentration of about 4.0 mol/L, the supersaturation effect has been captured by an inflection in the plot of surface tension and shear viscosity against concentration because of the solution heterogeneity, which was correlated by an inflection in the scattering intensity observed by performing the dynamic light scattering experiment. The binding mode of nitrate ions with the uranyl ion is found to be concentration-dependent, and at higher concentration, it is predominantly monodentate.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Arya Das
- Nuclear Recycle Board , Bhabha Atomic Research Centre , Mumbai 400094 , India.,Homi Bhabha National Institute , Mumbai 400094 , India
| | - Sk Musharaf Ali
- Chemical Engineering Division , Bhabha Atomic Research Centre , Mumbai 400085 , India.,Homi Bhabha National Institute , Mumbai 400094 , India
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Sahu P, Musharaf Ali S, Shenoy KT, Mohan S. Nanoscopic insights of saline water in carbon nanotube appended filters using molecular dynamics simulations. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2019; 21:8529-8542. [PMID: 30957831 DOI: 10.1039/c9cp00648f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Nanotube appended membranes are shown to be very promising due to their ultrafast water transport and very high salt rejection ability. Using classical molecular dynamics, the present study reports the nanoscopic assessment of various molecular events for nanotube-based desalination, which might be useful for nanoscale devices during process operation at the macroscopic scale. The characteristics of water and ion flow are discussed with varied strength of pressure gradient and salt concentration for different scales of confinement. The results revealed that the membranes comprising nanotubes of 1.0-1.1 nm diameter can be optimized for efficient water desalination with more than >95% salt rejection. Furthermore, the anomalies in water flux through nanotubes are linked with the hydration characteristics of ions inside CNTs. The results show the maximum hydration of confined ions inside the nanotubes, which indicated the minimum permeability of water due to freezing effects. Furthermore, the MD results revealed that akin to bulk phases, the mass transport through nanotubes can be linked with the component diffusivity in the medium. It has been demonstrated that not only the diffusivities of water and ions, but even the gradient of water to ion diffusivity might be utilized to predict and explore the experimental observations, which might be helpful in optimizing the operational regime in nanotube-based filtrations. Moreover, the thermodynamic characteristics of the flow are discussed in terms of the entropy of water and ions using the robust two-phase thermodynamic (2PT) method. The results reflect that the entropy of water is linked to the distortion of the hydrogen bond network inside the nanotube confinement, at the nanotube-water interface and at the bulk solution, whereas the entropy of ions seems to be majorly dominated by their oscillation. Also, the interconnection of hydration structure, mass flux and the diffusivity of water and ions along with their thermodynamic origin are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Pooja Sahu
- Chemical Engineering Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400085, India.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
7
|
Sahu P, Ali SM. Breakdown of continuum model for water transport and desalination through ultrathin graphene nanopores: insights from molecular dynamics simulations. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2019; 21:21389-21406. [DOI: 10.1039/c9cp04364k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
In the quest for identifying a graphene membrane for efficient water desalination, molecular dynamics simulations were performed for the pressure-driven flow of salty water across a multilayer graphene membrane.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Pooja Sahu
- Bhabha Atomic Research Center
- Mumbai 400085
- India
- Homi Bhabha National Institute
- Mumbai 400094
| | - Sk. Musharaf Ali
- Bhabha Atomic Research Center
- Mumbai 400085
- India
- Homi Bhabha National Institute
- Mumbai 400094
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Druchok M, Lukšič M. Carboxylated carbon nanotubes corked with tetraalkylammonium cations: A concept of nanocarriers in aqueous solutions. J Mol Liq 2018; 270:203-211. [PMID: 30906092 PMCID: PMC6425971 DOI: 10.1016/j.molliq.2017.11.107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
An explicit water molecular dynamics simulations were used to probe (6,6) and (9,9) single-walled carbon nanotubes, functionalized with three carboxylate ion groups at each of the two openings, as potential nanocarriers in aqueous solutions. Three tetraalkylammonium cations (i.e., tetraethyl-, tetrapropyl-, and tetrabuthylammonium) were tested as corks to cap the nanotube openings. The variation of the sizes of the nanotubes (diameter) and of the cork cations (bulkiness) allowed us to select the proper corks that fit the nanotube openings best. Smaller tetraalkylammonium ions could easily fit the openings, but since they are less hydrophobic compared to their larger analogues they showed less affinity for the interior of the nanotubes. On the other hand, the hydrophobicity (and thus the affinity for the nanotubes) can be adjusted through the increase of tetraalkylammonium cation size, providing that the cork still fits the opening. Additionally, an external electric field was tested as a means of nanotube uncorking. The field is capable of disjoining corked ions from the functionalized nanotube openings, triggering in this way a potential cargo release stored inside the nanotubes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- M Druchok
- Institute for Condensed Matter Physics, 1 Svientsitskii Str., 79011 Lviv, Ukraine
| | - M Lukšič
- Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, University of Ljubljana, Veˇna pot 113, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Scalambra F, Serrano-Ruiz M, Romerosa A. Water driven formation of channels: unusual solid-state structural transformation of a heterometallic polymer. Dalton Trans 2018; 47:3588-3595. [DOI: 10.1039/c7dt04515h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
We describe the synthesis of trans-{[(PTA)2CpRu-μ-CN-RuCp(PTA)2-μ-CoCl3]}n·(DMSO)n, and its crystal-to-crystal transformation to its cis isomer, with channels where water is nanoconfined, upon addition of water to the crystallization medium.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Franco Scalambra
- Área de Química Inorgánica-CIESOL
- Universidad de Almería
- 04120, Almería
- Spain
| | | | - Antonio Romerosa
- Área de Química Inorgánica-CIESOL
- Universidad de Almería
- 04120, Almería
- Spain
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Bucior BJ, Kolmakov GV, Male JM, Liu J, Chen DL, Kumar P, Johnson JK. Adsorption and Diffusion of Fluids in Defective Carbon Nanotubes: Insights from Molecular Simulations. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2017; 33:11834-11844. [PMID: 28915730 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b02841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) have been shown from both simulations and experiments to have remarkably low resistance to gas and liquid transport. This has been attributed to the remarkably smooth interior surface of pristine SWNTs. However, real SWNTs are known to have various defects that depend on the synthesis method and procedure used to activate the SWNTs. In this paper, we study adsorption and transport properties of atomic and molecular fluids in SWNTs having vacancy point defects. We construct models of defective nanotubes that have either unrelaxed defects, where the overall structure of the SWNT is not changed, or reconstructed defects, where the bonding topology and therefore the shape of the SWNT is allowed to change. Furthermore, we include partial atomic charges on the SWNT carbon atoms due to the reconstructed defects. We consider adsorption and diffusion of Ar atoms and CO2 and H2O molecules as examples of a noble gas, a linear quadrupolar fluid, and a polar fluid. Adsorption isotherms were found to be fairly insensitive to the defects, even for the case of water in the charged, reconstructed SWNT. We have computed both the self-diffusivities and corrected diffusivities (which are directly related to the transport diffusivities) for each of these fluids. In general, we found that at zero loading that defects can dramatically reduce the self- and corrected diffusivities. However, at high, liquidlike loadings, the self-diffusion coefficients for pristine and defective nanotubes are very similar, indicating that fluid-fluid collisions dominate the dynamics over the fluid-SWNT collisions. In contrast, the corrected diffusion coefficients can be more than an order of magnitude lower for water in defective SWNTs. This dramatic decrease in the transport diffusion is due to the formation of an ordered structure of water, which forms around a local defect site. It is therefore important to properly characterize the level and types of defects when accurate transport diffusivities are needed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin J Bucior
- Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, United States
- Chemical & Biological Engineering, Northwestern University , Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
| | - German V Kolmakov
- Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, United States
- Physics Department, NYC College of Technology, the City University of New York , Brooklyn, New York 11201, United States
| | - JoAnna M Male
- Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, United States
| | - Jinchen Liu
- Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, United States
| | - De-Li Chen
- Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, United States
- Institute of Physical Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University , Jinhua 321004, China
| | - Prashant Kumar
- Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, United States
| | - J Karl Johnson
- Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, United States
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Druchok M, Holovko M. Carbon nanotubes as adsorbents for uranyl ions from aqueous solutions: A molecular dynamics study. J Mol Liq 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.molliq.2016.09.093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
|