Newswise — Dr. Hong-Ju Lee and Dr. In-Hyuk Song of the Nano Materials Research Division on the Korea Institute of Materials Science (KIMS) have efficiently developed each a producing course of that permits nanoscale smoothing management of ceramic membrane surfaces and membrane supplies able to exactly filtering contaminants even beneath low-pressure situations. This expertise addresses key limitations of typical water-treatment membranes, which generally require excessive vitality consumption and sophisticated processing. The analysis outcomes have been consecutively revealed in main worldwide journals within the water-treatment subject, demonstrating the technological excellence of the work.
Ceramic membranes are important supplies for water therapy in excessive environments because of their wonderful chemical and thermal stability, with functions together with industrial wastewater therapy, seawater desalination, and the manufacturing of ultrapure water for semiconductor processes. Their efficiency is decided by how exactly the pore dimension — which capabilities because the filtration community — may be managed, in addition to how easily the floor of the supporting substrate is fashioned. However, typical manufacturing strategies require complicated processes involving repeated coating of a number of membrane layers onto the substrate adopted by high-temperature sintering, leading to vital vitality consumption. In addition, floor roughness generated throughout these processes ceaselessly causes microcracks within the higher separation layer, resulting in efficiency degradation. Furthermore, nanofiltration membranes sometimes function solely beneath excessive stress (round 10 bar), which will increase working prices and limits their industrial applicability.
To handle these challenges, the analysis staff newly developed a Mutual Doping method that enhances interparticle bonding by mixing particles from totally different layers, alongside with a Co-sintering course of that fires all layers concurrently. Through this method, the sintering temperature — beforehand round 1,300°C — was decreased to roughly 1,000°C, whereas bettering particle sinterability to attain a dense and strong ceramic construction even at decrease temperatures. In specific, the staff achieved an ultra-flat floor that will be tough to comprehend utilizing typical multi-step processes, decreasing floor roughness by greater than half (from 24.49 nm to 11.74 nm). This resulted in a producing course of that basically suppresses crack formation within the separation membrane.
In addition, the analysis staff secured a zirconia (ZrO₂)-based free nanofiltration membrane materials expertise able to delivering excessive separation efficiency even beneath low-pressure situations. By coating a self-developed eco-friendly aqueous zirconia (ZrO₂) sol onto the graceful substrate fashioned by means of the mutual doping course of, they produced a membrane through which each size-exclusion results from nice pores and electrostatic repulsion function concurrently. This membrane removes greater than 99.8% of dyes from dye-containing wastewater whereas selectively permitting salt ions to cross by means of, even at low pressures akin to tap-water situations (2 bar). The expertise resolves the long-standing problem of separating ions and dyes-a limitation of typical business membranes-thereby increasing the paradigm of water therapy from easy contaminant removing to useful resource restoration. Furthermore, the excessive water permeability considerably improves processing effectivity, whereas the superb chemical stability of ceramics and robust flux restoration traits improve each membrane lifetime and financial viability.
This research is critical in that it integrates supplies expertise and manufacturing course of innovation to ship a next-generation water-treatment answer able to concurrently controlling micropores and course of defects. By addressing two main challenges — course of simplification and low-pressure operation — the analysis demonstrates an environmentally pleasant, resource-circulating water-treatment expertise that balances each financial feasibility and efficiency. In specific, the near-defect-free floor management and excessive vitality effectivity symbolize a novel method that surpasses the constraints of typical membrane applied sciences for water therapy.
The developed expertise may be broadly utilized to fields requiring extremely exact water purification, resembling therapy of dyeing wastewater within the textile trade and the manufacturing of ultrapure water for semiconductor processes. In specific, its high-efficiency operation makes it attainable to considerably scale back vitality prices and carbon emissions in massive scale water therapy crops. Moreover, by securing core applied sciences within the high-value ceramic membrane market, a subject historically led by superior international locations, the innovation is predicted to reduce dependence on imports and develop its software as a strategic expertise for responding to international environmental laws.
Dr. Hong-Ju Lee, Senior Researcher and principal investigator at KIMS, said,“The significance of this work lies in securing both low-pressure-operable material technology and a manufacturing process capable of implementing it without defects.”He added,“We will continue our efforts not only to localize high-value ceramic membranes that have been entirely import-dependent, but also to advance this technology toward leading the global market in the future.”
This analysis was performed with help from the Nano and Materials Technology Development Program of the National Research Foundation of Korea beneath the Ministry of Science and ICT (Principal Investigator: Dr. Hong-Ju Lee, Nanomaterials Research Division), and from the Materials and Components Technology Development Program of the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology beneath the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (Principal Investigator: Dr. In-Hyuk Song, Nanomaterials Research Division). The analysis outcomes have been revealed on-line in main worldwide journals within the water-treatment subject — Desalination (high 2% in JCR) on October 15, 2025, and Journal of Membrane Science (high 5% in JCR) on February 1, 2026.
The analysis staff is at present specializing in scale-up research for large-area ceramic membrane fabrication and mass manufacturing based mostly on the secured expertise, and has accomplished home and worldwide patent filings for the core applied sciences concerned. Moving ahead, they plan to confirm industrial applicability by means of pilot-scale demonstrations and pursue expertise switch to related corporations.
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About Korea Institute of Materials Science(KIMS)
KIMS is a non-profit government-funded analysis institute beneath the Ministry of Science and ICT of the Republic of Korea. As the one institute specializing in complete supplies applied sciences in Korea, KIMS has contributed to Korean trade by finishing up a variety of actions associated to supplies science together with R&D, inspection, testing&analysis, and expertise help.