Milad Rabbani Esfahani

University of Alabama | UA · Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering

Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) represent one of the largest classes of porous crystalline materials. MOFs have been increasingly applied as functionalizing agents for membranes because of their porosity, high surface area, small particle size, aspect ratio control, tuneability, compatibility with a polymeric network, and exuberance of diverse func...

Due to adverse health effects and the broad sources of per- and polyfluoroakyl substances (PFAS), PFAS removal is a critical research area in water purification. We demonstrate the functionalization of thin-film composite (TFC) hollow fiber nanofiltration (HFN) membranes by MXene nanosheets during the interfacial polymerization (IP) process for enh...

In this study, copper metal organic frameworks (Cu-MOF) and silver metal organic frameworks (Ag-MOF) were synthesized and immobilized on and between GO sheets using an ultrasonication process. The GO-immobilized MOFs (GO-Ag-MOF and GO-Cu-MOF) showed enhanced physicochemical properties, including enhanced surface area, surface charge, and active ads...

Membrane-based separation processes such as reverse osmosis (RO), forward osmosis (FO), and nanofiltration (NF), are the key technologies for the desalination of brackish and seawater . Along these lines, the thin-film composite (TFC) membranes, prepared via interfacial polymerization (IP), are the predominant choice of the separator; nonetheless,...

The present study investigates the synthesis and effectiveness of gold/gelatin nanoparticles (NPs) biopolymer as a carrier for methotrexate (MTX) drug. Two different shapes of gold particles, including spherical AuNPs (50 & 100 nm) and gold nanorods (AuNRs) with three different sizes (20, 50 and 100 nm length) were synthesized using the chemical re...

The capturing of water contaminants and the remediation of water bodies is an important concern to human health due to severe side effects of contaminants on the body such as cancer. Pharmaceuticals, heavy metals, dyes, and chemical warfare agents (CWAs) are a few of the toxic pollutants that cause serious damage to the environment, humans, and ani...

The capturing of water contaminants and the remediation of water bodies is an important concern to human health due to severe side effects of contaminants on the body such as cancer. Pharmaceuticals, heavy metals, dyes, and chemical warfare agents (CWAs) are a few of the toxic pollutants that cause serious damage to the environment, humans, and ani...

Dopamine is one of the biological-based drugs that play a vital role in treating several human diseases. The con-trollable adsorption and release pattern of dopamine is an essential factor in dopamine effectiveness. Recently, the use of nanostructured materials has received much attention as a carrier (adsorption-desorption) for drug-delivery. The...

Nanofiltration (NF) membranes have been used for different applications in water treatment. In this work, we studied two facile surficial adhesive functionalization processes using polydopamine (pDA) and a metal–organic framework (MOFs) and investigated their individual and synergistic effects on membrane rejection, permeability, and antifouling pr...

With the global epidemic of the COVID-19 virus, extensive and rapid research on drug therapy is underway around the world. In this regard, one of the most widely studied drugs is Favipiravir. Our aim in this paper is to conduct comprehensive research based on the Density Functional Theory (DFT) on the potential of metallofullerenes as suitable drug...

This study investigated the performance of chitosan-graphene oxide nanocomposite for the controlled release of the Sumatriptan Succinate (SS) drug. Various analytical methods (i.e., SEM, TEM, AFM, TGA, XRD, and FT-IR) were used to characterize the crystalline structure, molecular structure, and morphology of the fabricated nanocomposites. The effec...

In the current work, the adsorption of sulfamide drug onto the exterior surface of four fullerene-like nanocages, including Al12N12, Al12P12, B12N12, and B12P12, was studied by employing density functional theory (DFT) and the quantum theory of atom in the molecule (QTAIM) calculations. Our calculations revealed that the sulfamide drug connects to...

This study investigates the effect of surface functionalization of a thin-film composite forward osmosis membrane with zwitterions and silver-based metal organic frameworks (Ag-MOFs) to improve the antifouling, anti-biofouling, and antimicrobial activity of the membrane. Two types of zwitterions, namely, 3-bromopropionic acid and 1,3-propane sulton...

The synthesis of nanostructures with tunable antibacterial properties using green solvents at room temperature is of environmental interest, and antibacterial nanomaterials have application in the fabrication of biofouling-resistant membranes for water purification and wastewater treatment. In this study, we investigate the effect of organic ligand...

Disclosed herein are methods of making nanostructured metal-organic frameworks. The methods include contacting a homogenized ligand solution with a homogenized aqueous metal salt solution at room temperature to form a mixture; and agitating the mixture for an amount of time to thereby form the nanostructured metal-organic framework at room temperat...

The waste fibers by-product of the bamboo construction industry were used as the sustainable feedstock for the fabrication of cellulose-based membranes using 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride [C4mim][Cl]([C4mim][Cl]) ionic liquid (IL) as a “green” and environmentally friendly solvent. The lignin and hemicellulose fractions of the bamboo waste fi...

Forward osmosis (FO) is an osmotically driven process widely studied for water desalination, wastewater treatment, and water reuse, as well as dilution and concentration of aqueous streams. However, its application is still hampered by the lack of ideal draw solutes, high-performance membranes, and fouling/biofouling. Biofouling is particularly cha...

Loose nanofiltration membranes, which have a loose selective layer and desired surface charge, provide high water flux and significant retention of low molecular weight molecules. In this study, a thin film of copper (II)- benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate (Cu-BTC) clusters was anchored on the surface of a chitosan (CS)-coated polyethersulfone (PES) mem...

Water pollution is one of the greatest challenges around the world. Nanocomposite membranes are a promising modified version of traditional polymeric membranes for water treatment, with three main characteristics of enhanced permeation, improved rejection and reduced fouling. For novel nanocomposite membranes, there is a strong connection between t...

Thin-film composite (TFC) membranes still suffer from fouling and biofouling. In this work, by incorporating a graphene oxide GO-silver-based metal-organic framework (Ag-MOF) into the TFC selective layer, we synthesized a thin-film nanocomposite (TFN) membrane that has notably-improved anti-biofouling and antifouling properties. The TFN membrane ha...

The trade-off relationship between permeability, selectivity, and antifouling capability of nanocomposite membranes is the focal point of effective membrane technology. This study introduces a new gold nanocomposite membrane with enhanced antifouling behavior and permeability, as well as improved rejection capability for water treatment. Different...

Modification of polymeric membranes for generating membranes with enhanced permeability, rejection, andself-cleaning capability in water treatment has been the major goal of researchers in academia and industryrecently. We report here a new polysulfone (PSF)/ polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSS) nanocompositeultrafiltration membrane with enha...

In the present paper, first, graphene oxide nanosheets were synthesized in-house according to the modified Hummers method, and these nanosheets were used to prepare graphene oxide nanofluids at two concentrations. Then the thermo-physical properties of nanofluids characterized using X-ray diffraction analysis, a scanning electron microscope, and UV...

Knowledge of the interactions between gold nanoparticles (GNPs) and dissolved organic matter (DOM) is significant in the development of detection devices for environmental sensing, studies of environmental fate and transport, and advances in antifouling water treatment membranes. The specific objective of this research was to spectroscopically inve...

The interaction of macromolecules with gold nanoparticles (GNPs) is of interest in the emerging field of biomedical and environmental detection devices. However, the physicochemical properties, including spectra, of GNPs in aqueous solution in the absence of metal–macromolecular interactions must first be considered before their activity in biologi...

Nanofluids are the new-generation heat transfer fluids largely used in heat exchangers for thermal energy transport applications. In this paper, graphene oxide was prepared in-house and used for nanofluid development and characterization. The graphene oxide was prepared by oxidizing purified natural flake graphite via the modified Hummers method. T...

Membrane fouling is an important concern for membrane separation technology. Preparation of the feed before entering into the membrane and physicochemical modifications of membrane are both important approaches toward enhancing the permeability and separation in membrane processes. The present report combines both approaches. In terms of membrane c...

Humic acid (HA) polyelectrolytes are natural colloids whose chemistry features carboxylic, phenolic and even amine functionalities. Gold nanoparticles may interact with the acidic functionalities, leading to HA disaggregation. In the current study, the aggregation behavior and surface charge characteristics of HA and citrate-coated gold nanoparticl...

In this study, first, graphene oxide nanosheets were synthesized based on the modified Hummers methods. The physicochemical properties of fabricated graphene oxide were characterized using X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), a scanning electron microscope (SEM), and UV–Vis spectrophotometry. Second, graphene oxide nanofluids were prepared at differen...

Performance of a hybrid ultraviolet/hydrogen peroxide (UV/H2O2)–mixed matrix membrane system for an azo dye, acid black 1 [AB1], removal in a water purification process was studied. Different mixed matrix membranes embedded with titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), and a mixture of them were fabricated by t...

Discharge of dye-containing industrial effluents into natural water bodies causes serious environmental and health problems. In most cases, dyes are toxic, carcinogenic and have a complex structure that is difficult to degrade. Partial degradation of dyes can also produce by-products that are equally harmful to the environment as their parent mater...

The aggregation of humic substances and their interaction with filtration media (membranes, soils) has implications for our understanding of membrane fouling during water treatment, the facilitated transport of contaminants, and the transport of organic matter through the microbial loop. To investigate the aggregation of fulvic and humic acids in l...

Natural organic matter (NOM), e.g. humic acid (HA), is a major foulant during ultrafiltration process of surface water. The research objective of this study is to investigate the differences between adsorption and deposition behavior of HA foulant on Polysulfone ultrafiltration process. Data were obtained by comparing the isothermal adsorption of p...

Complexation process between polyelectrolytes and nanoparticles plays important roles in many branches of nanotechnology and nano-science such as nanoparticles stabilization and dispersion in aquatic environment. The presence of a charged nanoparticles can significantly modify the acid/base and colloidal properties of a polyelectrolyte in water. Gl...

While natural organic matter and specifically humic acids (HA) have been studied extensively, the aggregation of these materials in solution is not well understood. In this study, the effects of time, concentration, and filtration; Dissolve Organic Carbon – Total Organic Carbon; (through a 0.45 micron Millipore filter) were examined by monitoring c...

The status of regulation of nanotechnology, as it relates to manufacture and use of inorganic engineered nanoparticles, is reviewed, with discussion of how soft law (or the individual protocols and lobbying of stakeholders) is evolving into hard law in the United States. Several instances of the history of development of hard law in the United Stat...

While natural organic matter and specifically humic acids (HA) have been studied extensively, the aggregation of these materials in solution is not well understood. In this study, the effects of time, concentration, and filtration (through a 0.45 micron Millipore filter) were examined by monitoring changes in zeta potential and dynamic light scatte...

In order to improve the efficiency of conversion of lignocellulosic materials to simple sugars in an environmentally friendly manner, the efficiency of ultrasonic pretreatment, as an alternative pretreatment method to conventional ones, was studied. Ultrasound waves with their mechanical features on degradation of organic network and effect on the...

Sugarcane bagasse is a promising lingocellulosic biomass for production of bioethanol. High-temperature treatment is one of the common prerequisites for almost all of the different kinds of pretreatment methods. Using microwave power, besides of creating high temperature, has physical effects on degradation of cellulosic polymeric structure of ling...

Humic acids are complex polyelectrolytes which exhibit various conformations and aggregation states depending on the solution chemistry. In the current research, dynamic light scattering and fluorescence spectroscopy were used to investigate the size distributions and fluorescence quenching behavior for the dissolved organic fractions of commercial...

The research objective of the overall project is to conduct a fundamental study of adsorption behavior in complex mixtures of nanoparticles, humic acids (HA) and polysulfone-flocs (PSF). The results will inform the nano-scale design of modern nanocomposite ultrafiltration (UF) water membrane separations. Water treatment can be an energy-intensive p...

In a world of seven billion people and counting the water resource is precious. The ultimate goal of this research is to aid in the advancement of water filtration systems. The specific goal is to quantitate the size distribution of a powdered Solvay polysulfone (PSF), so that adsorption studies of a model emerging pollutant (humic acid (HA) and na...