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. 2024 Apr 24;9(18):19911-19922.
doi: 10.1021/acsomega.3c09274. eCollection 2024 May 7.

Ternary Phase-Field Simulation of Poly(vinylidene fluoride) Microporous Membrane Structures Prepared by Nonsolvent-Induced Phase Separation with Different Additives and Solvent Treatments

Zhuang Zhang  1 , Ping Fang  1 , Yumeng Jiang  1 , Shurong Cui  1 , Chaoyu Yang  1
Affiliations

Ternary Phase-Field Simulation of Poly(vinylidene fluoride) Microporous Membrane Structures Prepared by Nonsolvent-Induced Phase Separation with Different Additives and Solvent Treatments

Zhuang Zhang et al. ACS Omega. .

Abstract

In this study, an existing ternary membrane system based on nonsolvent-induced phase separation (NIPS) with a phase-field model was optimized. To study and analyze the effects of different additives on the formation of the skin layer and the effects of the three solvents on membrane characterization under the same conditions, two-dimensional simulations of the relevant parameters of a poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) membrane system were performed. The specific application of quaternary substances in ternary membrane systems was elaborated by determining the cohesive energy density between the additives and solvents, followed by the interaction parameters χ under the joint effect of the two. The results showed that the PVDF microporous membrane formed a dense surface layer at the mass transfer exchange interface, and with an increase in the poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) concentration, the phase separation of the skin layer was predominantly transformed from liquid-solid partitioning to liquid-liquid partitioning; the number of membrane pores increased with increasing poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) concentration. The N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc) solvent system had the most stable thermodynamic properties; the dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) solvent system had mostly large pores running through the membrane and exhibited a porous structure. Related experiments also validated the model. Therefore, this model can be applied to other PVDF ternary membrane systems to better understand the structural development of microporous PVDF membranes under different conditions.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing financial interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Microscopic simulation of the quaternary PVDF membrane system under different PEG concentrations (a–c) at different times.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Microscopic simulation of the quaternary PVDF membrane system under different PVP concentrations (a–c) at different times.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Electron microscopy images of PVDF membranes with different PEG concentrations.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Electron microscopy images of PVDF membranes with different PVP concentrations.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Trends of porosity and time required for film formation in systems with different PEG concentrations during simulations.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Trends of porosity and time required for film formation in the system with different PVP concentrations during simulations.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Microsimulation of the quaternary PVDF membrane system when the volume fraction of PVDF is 18% and the solvents are DMF (a), DMAC (b), and DMSO (c).
Figure 8
Figure 8
Electron microscopy images of membrane pairs with different solvents: (a) DMF, (b) DMAC, and (c) DMSO.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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