Bifunctional chelating resin-modified polymer membrane for sustainable osmotic energy generation

Author Identifier (ORCID)

Munirah Mohammad: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7168-2462

Yasaman Boroumand: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-9716-4609

Amir Razmjou: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3554-5129

Abstract

Ion-selective membrane-based reverse electrodialysis (RED) has the potential to convert osmotic energy into electricity, offering a promising solution to complement the global renewable energy supply. However, the development of scalable, eco-friendly, polymer-based ion-selective membranes that achieve both high power density and long-term stability remains a crucial challenge. In this study, we present a stable mixed matrix membrane (MMM) by incorporating a bifunctional chelating resin into a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) membrane to enhance cation conduction. The introduction of phosphonic and sulfonic acid-functionalized ion-selective resins, which exhibit a high affinity for metal ions due to the presence of abundant oxygen atoms, significantly improves both ion conduction and selectivity. As a result, the mixed matrix membrane achieves a remarkable power density of 26.5 W/m2under a 500-fold salt gradient, and a real-world output power of 8.80 W/m2is generated at the interface of natural seawater and freshwater. The MMM fabrication offers a viable, cost-effective, and scalable approach for enhancing osmotic energy conversion in ion-selective polymers, paving the way for its application in sustainable energy harvesting, redox flow batteries, and ion separation technologies.

Document Type

Journal Article

Date of Publication

9-12-2025

Volume

7

Issue

17

Publication Title

ACS Applied Polymer Materials

Publisher

ACS

School

School of Engineering

Comments

Tonnah, R. K., Mohammad, M., Xiao, H., Razbin, M., Arshadi, F., Boroumand, Y., Razmjou, A., & Asadnia, M. (2025). Bifunctional chelating Resin-Modified polymer membrane for sustainable osmotic energy generation. ACS Applied Polymer Materials, 7(17), 11164–11174. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsapm.5c01709

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First Page

11164

Last Page

11174

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Link to publisher version (DOI)

10.1021/acsapm.5c01709