Nanoscale control of internal inhomogeneity enhances water transport in desalination membranes

Science ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 371 (6524) ◽  
pp. 72-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tyler E. Culp ◽  
Biswajit Khara ◽  
Kaitlyn P. Brickey ◽  
Michael Geitner ◽  
Tawanda J. Zimudzi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Transport ◽  
Water Permeability ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Density Fluctuations ◽  
Active Layer Thickness ◽  
Chemical Compositions ◽  
Design Strategies ◽  
Nanoscale Structures ◽  
Density Maps ◽  
Similar Chemical

Biological membranes can achieve remarkably high permeabilities, while maintaining ideal selectivities, by relying on well-defined internal nanoscale structures in the form of membrane proteins. Here, we apply such design strategies to desalination membranes. A series of polyamide desalination membranes—which were synthesized in an industrial-scale manufacturing line and varied in processing conditions but retained similar chemical compositions—show increasing water permeability and active layer thickness with constant sodium chloride selectivity. Transmission electron microscopy measurements enabled us to determine nanoscale three-dimensional polyamide density maps and predict water permeability with zero adjustable parameters. Density fluctuations are detrimental to water transport, which makes systematic control over nanoscale polyamide inhomogeneity a key route to maximizing water permeability without sacrificing salt selectivity in desalination membranes.

High Resolution Microscopy of Multi-Layered Biological Crystals

1982 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 80-83
Author(s):  
H.A. Cohen ◽  
T.W. Jeng ◽  
W. Chiu
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Low Dose ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Data Interpretation ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Biological Objects ◽  
Density Maps ◽  
Density Map ◽  
Complex Crystal ◽  
High Resolution Microscopy

This tutorial will discuss the methodology of low dose electron diffraction and imaging of crystalline biological objects, the problems of data interpretation for two-dimensional projected density maps of glucose embedded protein crystals, the factors to be considered in combining tilt data from three-dimensional crystals, and finally, the prospects of achieving a high resolution three-dimensional density map of a biological crystal. This methodology will be illustrated using two proteins under investigation in our laboratory, the T4 DNA helix destabilizing protein gp32*I and the crotoxin complex crystal.

Sorption of phenols on hexadecyltrimethylammonium- modified bentonite: Application of Polanyi−Manes potential theory

2020 ◽  
pp. 0958305X2097728
Author(s):  
Jiyeon Choi ◽  
Dong-Ik Slong ◽  
Won Sik Shin
Keyword(s):  
Molar Volume ◽  
Potential Theory ◽  
Characteristic Curve ◽  
Chemical Compositions ◽  
Pore Filling ◽  
Sorption Data ◽  
Similar Chemical ◽  
Competitive Model ◽  
Sorption Potential ◽  
Sorption Systems

This study investigated the sorption of phenol and 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) on natural bentonite modified with hexadecyltrimethylammonium (HDTMA) cation. The Freundlich, Langmuir, Dubinin−Radushkevich (DR), Sips, and Polanyi−Dubinin−Manes (PDM) models fitted the sorption data well (R2 > 0.92). The Freundlich coefficient and the maximum sorbed amount of the Langmuir and PDM models of 4-CP were higher than phenol because of higher hydrophobicity (log Kow = 2.39 for 4-CP and 1.46 for phenol). The PDM model that includes solubility and molar volume was highly useful in predicting the sorption of phenols having widely different hydrophobicity and solubility. The characteristic curves, the plot of sorbed volume ( qv) versus the sorption potential per molar volume ( ε/ Vm) of 4-CP and phenol were distinctly different although they have similar chemical compositions. The selectivity of 4-CP (3.72) was higher than that of phenol (0.27) in binary sorption systems. The sorbed volume ( qv) in the binary sorption was remarkably reduced and the characteristic curve had wider distribution owing to competition in pore-filling. The sorption behaviors were elucidated by partitioning and pore-filling mechanisms. Among the tested binary sorption models, the modified Langmuir competitive model was the best in the prediction of the binary sorption (R2 > 0.98).

scholarly journals Electron Cryotomography of Tula Hantavirus Suggests a Unique Assembly Paradigm for Enveloped Viruses

2010 ◽  
Vol 84 (10) ◽  
pp. 4889-4897 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juha T. Huiskonen ◽  
Jussi Hepojoki ◽  
Pasi Laurinmäki ◽  
Antti Vaheri ◽  
Hilkka Lankinen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Membrane Curvature ◽  
Emerging Viruses ◽  
Enveloped Viruses ◽  
Viral Membrane ◽  
Density Maps ◽  
Virion Structure ◽  
Electron Cryotomography ◽  
Assembly Principles

ABSTRACT Hantaviruses (family Bunyaviridae) are rodent-borne emerging viruses that cause a serious, worldwide threat to human health. Hantavirus diseases include hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome and hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome. Virions are enveloped and contain a tripartite single-stranded negative-sense RNA genome. Two types of glycoproteins, GN and GC, are embedded in the viral membrane and form protrusions, or “spikes.” The membrane encloses a ribonucleoprotein core, which consists of the RNA segments, the nucleocapsid protein, and the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. Detailed information on hantavirus virion structure and glycoprotein spike composition is scarce. Here, we have studied the structures of Tula hantavirus virions using electron cryomicroscopy and tomography. Three-dimensional density maps show how the hantavirus surface glycoproteins, membrane, and ribonucleoprotein are organized. The structure of the GN-GC spike complex was solved to 3.6-nm resolution by averaging tomographic subvolumes. Each spike complex is a square-shaped assembly with 4-fold symmetry. Spike complexes formed ordered patches on the viral membrane by means of specific lateral interactions. These interactions may be sufficient for creating membrane curvature during virus budding. In conclusion, the structure and assembly principles of Tula hantavirus exemplify a unique assembly paradigm for enveloped viruses.

scholarly journals Supercritical carbon dioxide design strategies: from drug carriers to soft killers

2015 ◽  
Vol 373 (2057) ◽  
pp. 20150009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Aguiar-Ricardo ◽  
Vasco D. B. Bonifácio ◽  
Teresa Casimiro ◽  
Vanessa G. Correia
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Supercritical Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Polymeric Materials ◽  
Drug Carriers ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Materials Processing ◽  
Design Strategies ◽  
Simple Economic ◽  
Supercritical Carbon

The integrated use of supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO 2 ) and micro- and nanotechnologies has enabled new sustainable strategies for the manufacturing of new medications. ‘Green’ scCO 2 -based methodologies are well suited to improve either the synthesis or materials processing leading to the assembly of three-dimensional multifunctional constructs. By using scCO 2 either as C1 feedstock or as solvent, simple, economic, efficient and clean routes can be designed to synthesize materials with unique properties such as polyurea dendrimers and oxazoline-based polymers/oligomers. These new biocompatible, biodegradable and water-soluble polymeric materials can be engineered into multifunctional constructs with antimicrobial activity, targeting moieties, labelling units and/or efficiently loaded with therapeutics. This mini-review highlights the particular features exhibited by these materials resulting directly from the followed supercritical routes.

scholarly journals Three-dimensional lateral and vertical relationships of inner medullary loops of Henle and collecting ducts

2004 ◽  
Vol 287 (4) ◽  
pp. F767-F774 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas L. Pannabecker ◽  
William H. Dantzler
Keyword(s):  
Water Permeability ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Short Length ◽  
Vertical Relationships ◽  
Functional Reconstruction ◽  
Collecting Ducts

Functional reconstruction of inner medullary thin limbs of Henle and collecting ducts (CDs) has enabled us to characterize distinctive three-dimensional vertical and lateral relationships between these segments. We previously reported that inner medullary descending thin limbs (DTLs) that form a bend at a distance greater than ∼1 mm below the inner medullary base express detectable aquaporin (AQP) 1 only along the initial 40% of the segment before the bend, whereas ClC-K1 is expressed continuously along all ascending thin limbs (ATLs), beginning with the prebend segment. We have now reconstructed individual CDs that are grouped together in single clusters at the base of the inner medulla; CDs belonging to each separate cluster coalesce into a single CD in the deep papilla. DTLs are positioned predominantly at the periphery of each individual CD cluster at all levels of the inner medulla and are absent from within the cluster. In contrast, ATLs are distributed near uniformly among the CDs and DTLs at all levels of the inner medulla. A second population of inner medullary DTLs averages ∼700 μm in length from base to bend and, as previously reported, expresses no detectable AQP1 and expresses ClC-K1 continuously beginning with the prebend segment. ATLs located within the interior of the CD clusters arise predominantly from these short AQP1-null inner medullary DTLs, suggesting there may be functional interdependence between IMCD1 segments and short-length inner medullary thin limbs exhibiting minimal water permeability along their descending segments. AQP1-expressing DTLs and CDs are apparently separated into two structurally distinct lateral compartments. A similar lateral compartmentation between the ATLs and CDs is not apparent. This architectural arrangement indicates that fluid and solutes may be preferentially transported transversely between multiple inner medullary compartments.

Dopamine inhibits AVP-dependent Na+ transport and water permeability in rat CCD via a D4-like receptor

1996 ◽  
Vol 271 (2) ◽  
pp. F391-F400 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Sun ◽  
J. A. Schafer
Keyword(s):  
Water Transport ◽  
Water Permeability ◽  
Sch 23390 ◽  
Na Transport ◽  
D2 Agonist ◽  
Osmotic Water ◽  
D1 Agonists ◽  
Transepithelial Voltage ◽  
Specific Antagonist ◽  
Type Receptor

We studied the receptor responsible for dopamine action in isolated perfused cortical collecting ducts (CCD) from rats treated with deoxy-corticosterone. (Critical experiments were repeated in CCD from untreated rats with the same results.) At doses > or = 1 microM, dopamine inhibited arginine vasopressin (AVP)-dependent Na+ and water transport (measured by the unidirectional lumen-to-bath 22Na+ flux and the transepithelial voltage) and osmotic water permeability (Pf). The effects of dopamine were not reversed by the dopamine-1 (D1) antagonist SCH-23390, and no inhibition was produced by the D1 agonists fenoldopam or SKF-81247. When Na+ transport and Pf were stimulated with 8-(4-chlorophenylthio)adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate plus 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine, dopamine did not inhibit, suggesting a "D2-type" receptor. However, the D2 agonist quinpirole had no effect on the AVP-dependent transepithelial voltage (VT), and the D2 and D3 antagonists domperidone and pimozide did not reverse dopamine inhibition of VT. The only agent tested that reversed the effects of dopamine was the D4-specific antagonist clozapine. We conclude that dopamine inhibition of salt and water transport in the CCD is mediated by a D4-like receptor.

scholarly journals Study of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PPF-1 biofilm formation using microfluidics: effect of magnesium on biofilm detachment in engineered conduits

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Y. Harvey ◽  
Cynthia Gagné-Thivierge ◽  
Sepideh Fakari ◽  
Jean Barbeau ◽  
Steve Charette ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Reference Strain ◽  
Mechanical Stability ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Opportunistic Pathogen ◽  
Shear Stresses ◽  
Density Maps ◽  
Biofilm Detachment ◽  
Flow Systems ◽  
Dynamics Simulations

The bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen in certain organisms, including humans, but can also survive and proliferate in natural and engineered water systems. Microfluidic technology can address hydrodynamic questions related to bacterial contamination of water flow systems and infrastructure. In this work, a microfluidic approach was devised to study the effect of shear stresses on biofilms from a dental unit waterline (DUWL)-isolated P. aeruginosa strain, PPF-1. During application of relevant shear stress levels to DUWLs, the response of the PPF-1 biofilm was observed and compared to a clinical P. aeruginosa reference strain, PAO1. The response measurements were repeated for biofilms exposed to additional Mg2+ ions. Using a microfluidic approach to transforming optical density maps into three-dimensional images, we applied computational fluid dynamics simulations and determined the critical shear stresses for biofilm sloughing. In the absence of Mg2+, PPF-1 biofilms showed weaker attachment than PAO1 biofilms, resulting in continuous slough/regrowth cycles triggered by applied shear stresses of 1.42 +/- 0.32 Pa. Introducing Mg2+ into the PPF-1 biofilm culture medium seemed to place the biofilm into a viscoplastic mechanical state, thereby increasing mechanical stability, which resulted in elevated tolerances to shear stresses up to a critical value of 5.43 +/- 1.52 Pa. This resulted in a propensity for less frequent but more catastrophic sloughing events like that observed for the PAO1 reference strain. This suggests that in a low ionic environment, biofilms from the PPF-1 strain can result in higher and more continuous ejection of biofilm materials, possibly leading to increased downstream colonization of engineered flow systems.

scholarly journals Three-Dimensional (3-D) Immersed-Boundary (IB) Based Tornado Model for Computational Analysis of Disastrous Wind Load on Buildings

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xixiong Guo ◽  
Jun Cao
Keyword(s):  
Wind Field ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Outer Boundary ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Influence Factors ◽  
Research Direction ◽  
Wind Loading ◽  
Immersed Boundary ◽  
Design Strategies ◽  
Straight Line

This study is aimed at developing a novel computational framework that can essentially simulate a tornadic wind field and investigate the wind loadings on ground constructions. It is well known that tornado is a highly turbulent airflow that simultaneously translates, rotates and updrafts with a high speed. Tornadoes induce a significantly elevated level of wind forces if compared to a straight-line wind. A suitably designed building for a straight-line wind would fail to survive when exposed to a tornadic-like wind of the same wind speed. It is necessary to design buildings that are more resistant to tornadoes. Since the study of tornado dynamics relying on field observations and laboratory experiments is usually expensive, restrictive, and time-consuming, computer simulation mainly via the large eddy simulation (LES) method has become a more attractive research direction in shedding light on the intricate characteristics of a tornadic wind field. For numerical simulation of a tornado-building interaction scenario, it looks quite challenging to seek a set of physically-rational and meanwhile computationally-practical boundary conditions to accompany traditional CFD approaches; however, little literature can be found, as of today, in three-dimensional (3D) computational tornado dynamics study. Inspired by the development of the immersed boundary (IB) method, this study employed a re-tailored Rankine-combined vortex model (RCVM) that applies the “relative motion” principle to the translational component of tornado, such that the building is viewed as “virtually” translating towards a “pinned” rotational flow that remains time-invariant at the far field region. This revision renders a steady-state kinematic condition applicable to the outer boundary of a large tornado simulation domain, successfully circumventing the boundary condition updating process that the original RCVM would have to suffer, and tremendously accelerating the computation. Wind loading and its influence factors are comprehensively investigated and analyzed both on a single building and on a multiple-building configuration. The relation between the wind loadings and the height and shape of the building is also examined in detail. Knowledge of these loadings may lead to design strategies that can enable ground construction to be more resistant to tornadoes, reducing the losses caused by this type of disastrous weather.

scholarly journals Thermal History of Matrix Forsterite Grains from Murchison Based on High-resolution Tomography

2021 ◽  
Vol 922 (2) ◽  
pp. 256
Author(s):  
Giulia Perotti ◽  
Henning O. Sørensen ◽  
Henning Haack ◽  
Anja C. Andersen ◽  
Dario Ferreira Sanchez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Electron Density ◽  
Chemical Compositions ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Density Maps ◽  
Thermally Processed ◽  
The Matrix ◽  
History Of ◽  
Chondrule Formation

Abstract Protoplanetary disks are dust- and gas-rich structures surrounding protostars. Depending on the distance from the protostar, this dust is thermally processed to different degrees and accreted to form bodies of varying chemical compositions. The primordial accretion processes occurring in the early protoplanetary disk such as chondrule formation and metal segregation are not well understood. One way to constrain them is to study the morphology and composition of forsteritic grains from the matrix of carbonaceous chondrites. Here, we present high-resolution ptychographic X-ray nanotomography and multimodal chemical microtomography (X-ray diffraction and X-ray fluorescence) to reveal the early history of forsteritic grains extracted from the matrix of the Murchison CM2.5 chondrite. The 3D electron density maps revealed, at unprecedented resolution (64 nm), spherical inclusions containing Fe–Ni, very little silica-rich glass and void caps (i.e., volumes where the electron density is consistent with conditions close to vacuum) trapped in forsterite. The presence of the voids along with the overall composition, petrological textures, and shrinkage calculations is consistent with the grains experiencing one or more heating events with peak temperatures close to the melting point of forsterite (∼2100 K), and subsequently cooled and contracted, in agreement with chondrule-forming conditions.

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