Facile preparation of durable superhydrophobic DTMS@HKUST-1 wood membrane for continuous oil-water separation in harsh conditions

Manufacturing durable wood membranes that demonstrate both high efficiency and ultra-high flux for continuous oil-water separation utilizing scalable and cost-effective processes remains a serious challenge. In this study, a facile two-step approach is employed to prepare a novel superhydrophobic/oleophilic wood-based MOF (metal-organic framework) membrane. This method involves in-situ anchoring of the octahedral Cu-HKUST-1 (copper benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate) onto the wood sponge (WS), which inherently features internal micro-channels. The structure is then modified using the eco-friendly hydrophobic long-chain coupling agent dodecyltrimethoxysilane (DTMS). Due to its unique micro/nanoscale rough surface morphology and low surface energy, the functional wood membrane (DTMS/HKUST-1@WS) exhibited a high contact angle of 162.98±1.10° for water and was able to effectively separate various immiscible oil/water mixtures. Notably, the DTMS/HKUST-1@WS membrane can be integrated into a pump drive system, serving as an advanced filter element for the sustained and efficient oil-water constituents. Results showed that this membrane possesses attractive permeability toward CCl4 (56689.34 L·m−2·h−1) and toluene (47241.12 L·m−2·h−1), achieving separation efficiencies over 99.0%. Furthermore, this novel membrane exhibits remarkable resistance to physical damage, high/low temperatures, and corrosive solutions, thereby showcasing stable superhydrophobic and superoleophilic interfaces suitable for oily wastewater treatment in harsh environments. Thus, this work offers an innovative approach for designing functional wood-based MOF membranes to achieve highly efficient continuous oil-water separation.