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Interplay Between Adsorption and Hydrodynamics in Nanochannels: Towards Tunable Membranes

Sela Samin and René van Roij
Phys. Rev. Lett. 118, 014502 – Published 6 January 2017
Physics logo See Focus story: Nanochannel Could Separate Mixed Fluids
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Abstract

We study how the adsorption of a near-critical binary mixture in a nanopore is modified by flow inside the pore. We identify three types of steady states upon variation of the pore Péclet number (Pep), which can be reversibly accessed by the application of an external pressure. Interestingly, for small Pep the pore acts as a weakly selective membrane which separates the mixture. For intermediate Pep, the flow effectively shifts the adsorption in the pore, thereby opening possibilities for enhanced and tunable solute transport through the pore. For large Pep, the adsorption is progressively reduced inside the pore, accompanied by a long-ranged dispersion of the mixture far from the pore.

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  • Received 23 August 2016

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.118.014502

© 2017 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Polymers & Soft Matter

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Nanochannel Could Separate Mixed Fluids

Published 6 January 2017

Calculations show that capillary forces affecting a fluid mixture flowing through a nanochannel could be used to separate the mixture.

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Authors & Affiliations

Sela Samin* and René van Roij

  • Institute for Theoretical Physics, Center for Extreme Matter and Emergent Phenomena, Utrecht University, Princetonplein 5, 3584 CC Utrecht, The Netherlands

  • *S.Samin@uu.nl

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Issue

Vol. 118, Iss. 1 — 6 January 2017

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