Nanowood Filter Improves Desalination

Aug-06-19 A wood-based water filtration membrane could offer a sustainable and more efficient material for desalination processes.

Inspired by the way water circulates through trees, the membrane is made up of a piece of American Basswood with the hemicellulose and lignin removed, creating a ‘nanowood.” A saline treatment is then used to make the material water resistant before it is sliced into very thin sheets about 500 microns thick. When tested with water vapor, the nanowood membrane allowed the water molecules to travel through the wood, leaving the salt behind and gathering as pure water on the other side.

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[EUREKALERT.ORG]
[MSE.UMD.EDU]

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