A research team led by Professor Lu Shao from the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) has introduced the concept of green, sustainable, and efficient nanofiltration membranes for water purification. Their findings, titled "Sustainable Nanofiltration Membranes Enable Ultrafast Water Purification", were recently published in Nature Water.
The study addresses the long-standing challenges presented by traditional nanofiltration membranes, which often rely on petroleum-based raw materials and toxic solvents and are difficult to degrade. Guided by green chemistry principles, the team developed a novel membrane using polylactic acid as the support layer and low-hazard chemicals such as xylitol, dopamine, and oleic acid. Through interfacial polymerization, they developed a unique wavy nanoselective separation layer, avoiding harmful solvents and enabling full biodegradation in natural soil environments.
Schematic of sustainable nanofiltration membrane fabrication and organic degradation process. [Photo/hit.edu.cn]
Tests showed outstanding performance: ultrahigh water flux of 100.7 Lm-2h-1bar-1, 99.9 percent rejection of organic molecules such as Congo Red, and complete biodegradability with over 90 percent degradation within six months. The degradation products were proven non-toxic, realizing a full life-cycle membrane technology — green at the source, efficient in use, and degradable at the end.
HIT is the first corresponding institution of the paper. Professor Lu Shao and Professor Huanting Wang from Monash University are co-corresponding authors, with doctoral student Junhui Huang as the first author. Professor Yanqiu Zhang, Associate Researcher Jing Guo, Professor Shan Qiu, doctoral student Mu Yuan, and others also participated in the research.
The research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and other grants.
Read the paper here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s44221-025-00492-x