Artificial water channels—deconvolution of natural Aquaporins through synthetic design

Artificial Water Channels (AWCs) have been developed during the last decade with the hope to construct artificial analogues of Aquaporin (AQP) proteins. Their osmotic water permeability are in the range of natural transporters, making them suitable candidates that can potentially transport water at...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:npj clean water 2018-08, Vol.1 (1), Article 13
Main Authors: Kocsis, Istvan, Sun, Zhanhu, Legrand, Yves Marie, Barboiu, Mihail
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
639/638/541
704/172/169/895
Aquaporins
Aquatic Pollution
Arrays
Channels
Chemical Sciences
Earth and Environmental Science
Environment
Fabrication
Membranes
Mimicry
Nanotechnology
Operating costs
Permeability
Review Article
Salt rejection
Waste Water Technology
Water Industry/Water Technologies
Water Management
Water Pollution Control
Water purification
Water Quality/Water Pollution
Water treatment
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Summary:Artificial Water Channels (AWCs) have been developed during the last decade with the hope to construct artificial analogues of Aquaporin (AQP) proteins. Their osmotic water permeability are in the range of natural transporters, making them suitable candidates that can potentially transport water at lower energy and operating cost. Compared to AQPs, AWCs would have several potential advantages, such as improved stability, simple and scalable fabrication and higher functional density when confined in 2D membrane arrays. The first knowledge gap between AWCs and AQPs is in the mimicry of the complete set of functionality, in terms of obtaining systems capable of simultaneous water permeation and salt rejection, while not forfeiting the advantage of simplicity. Despite incipient developments, major problems still remain unsolved, such as their up-scaling preparation procedures from laboratory studies to square meters needed for large industrial membrane applications. However, the flow of structural information from molecular level through nanoscale dimensions, towards highly ordered ultradense macroscopic arrays of AWCs is conceptually possible. Successfully transitioning from synthetic molecules to functional channels and materials could lead to a new generation of membranes for water purification. Moving AWCs into products in the commercial arena is now the main objective of research in this new-born field.
ISSN:2059-7037
2059-7037
DOI:10.1038/s41545-018-0013-y