Emulsion Separation is the removal of the dispersed phase of an emulsion by a membrane, by a demulsifier, or by a field, and the membrane route dominates when the droplet is smaller than a few micrometres. A hydrogel nanofibrous membrane separates an oil-in-water emulsion by squeezing coalescence, so the water passes while the oil is held at the fibre [1]. A heterogeneous wettability, with a hydrophilic patch beside a hydrophobic one, breaks the film between two droplets and lets a coalesced droplet through [2]. A helical carbon nanotube grown inside a ceramic channel raises the flux without closing the pore [3]. A piezoelectric membrane turns a pressure fluctuation into a surface charge, and that charge destabilises the film at the interface [4]. A hyperbranched polyether demulsifier grafted on a polyvinylidene fluoride membrane adds a chemical route to the same end [5].
- oil-in-water emulsion
- membrane separation
- demulsification
- coalescence
- wettability
- ceramic support
- flux recovery
Membrane Separation Technologies·Water Science and Technology·Environmental Science·Physical Sciences
References
- Zhu, X.; Zhu, L.; Li, H.; Zhang, C.; Xue, J.; Wang, R.; Qiao, X.; Xue, Q. Enhancing oil-in-water emulsion separation performance of polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel nanofibrous membrane by squeezing coalescence demulsification. Journal of Membrane Science 2021, 630, 119324. [CrossRef]
- Cao, L.; Sun, Y.; Liu, H.; Lin, H.; Li, L. An emulsion demulsification membrane with heterogeneous wettability structure for efficient oil-water separation. Journal of Membrane Science 2026, 738, 124860. [CrossRef]
- Yuan, K.; Chen, R.; Zeng, Y. Fabrication of Composite Membrane by Constructing Helical Carbon Nanotubes in Ceramic Support Channels for Efficient Emulsion Separation. Membranes 2025, 15, 150. [CrossRef]
- Wang, J.; Chen, D.; Zhang, W.; Geng, S.; Wang, Z.; Bao, M.; Li, Y. Pressure-triggered piezoelectric membrane-mediated interfacial demulsification toward high-efficiency emulsion separation and dynamic antifouling. Journal of Membrane Science 2026, 757, 125940. [CrossRef]
- Xu, C.; Yan, F.; Wang, M.; Yan, H.; Cui, Z.; Li, J.; He, B. Fabrication of hyperbranched polyether demulsifier modified PVDF membrane for demulsification and separation of oil-in-water emulsion. Journal of Membrane Science 2020, 602, 117974. [CrossRef]